XP Factory plc (LON:XPF), one of the UK’s pre-eminent experiential leisure businesses operating the Escape Hunt and Boom Battle Bar brands, has provided an update on trading for the third quarter of its financial year to 31 March 2025 including the important Christmas and New Year period.
Highlights:
· Very strong seasonal performances recorded by both Escape Hunt™ and Boom Battle Bar™ brands
- 17.4% LFL sales delivered in Boom in the five weeks to January 2025
- 14.3% LFL sales delivered by Escape Hunt in the same period
- 8.5% LFL sales delivered by the Group in the 14 weeks to 5 January 2025 (Q3 FY 25) – up from 3.9% in H1 FY25
· 20 Boom sites and 8 Escape Hunt sites delivered record sales weeks over the Christmas period
· New site in Cambridge opened particularly well for both brands
XP Factory enjoyed strong performances from both Escape Hunt and Boom Battle Bar over the crucial Christmas and New Year period, boosted by excellent corporate bookings.
Like-for-like sales from the Escape Hunt owner operated business grew 14.3% in the five weeks to 5 January 2025, with the division achieving its highest ever sales week in the period between Christmas and New Year. Total sales from the Escape Hunt owner operated segment in the 40 weeks to 5 January 2025 were £11m, representing 5.3% like-for-like growth year to date.
Like-for-like sales from the Boom Battle Bar owner operated business grew 17.4% in the five weeks to 5 January 2025. This was particularly pleasing given the strong comparative performance in 2023. Sales in the Boom owner operated segment in the 40 weeks to 5 January 2025 totalled £31m, representing 5.9% like-for-like growth year to date.
The Group opened its newest unit in Cambridge in the first week of December, which represents the culmination of its best thinking for both brands. Performance has so far exceeded our expectations, and the customer reception has been outstanding. Although very early in its journey, the Board has been delighted to see both Cambridge Boom and Cambridge Escape Hunt sales performance sitting so highly in the rankings relative to the other owner operated sites.
Summary and outlook
The strong recent performances from both brands have offset the relatively softer period of trading in the summer and the Group is currently on track to meet current year market expectations.
The Board is cognisant of the continuing macroeconomic uncertainty and associated nervousness in consumer confidence and remains focused on optimising performance in the final quarter of the financial year, whilst laying the foundations for the accelerated openings programme to come.
Good progress has also been made on bringing new sites into legals which underpin the Group’s accelerated growth strategy to be funded by the new bank facility as outlined in the recent interim results. The Board’s vision is to deliver £90m of sales and £13m Group EBITDA within four years, with an underlying run-rate revenue of £100m and a 15% Group EBITDA margin.
Commenting, Richard Harpham, Chief Executive of XP Factory plc said “We are delighted with the exceptional performances achieved in both our brands over the important Christmas period. The recent performance coupled with our accelerated growth strategy provide an exciting and clear path to value creation, capitalising on the growing and positive long-term trends in favour of experiential leisure. “
