Unlike Jamie Oliver, Gordon Ramsay’s restaurants made a profit in a ‘tough year for restaurateurs’
- Days after fellow celebrity chef Jamie Oliver’s restaurant group collapses, Ramsay says he has turned previous year’s US$4.8 million loss into US$633,000 profit
- Briton has 38 restaurants in the UK and overseas, and 20 million social media followers online
Gordon Ramsay’s global restaurant empire is back in profit, despite tough conditions in the restaurant industry.
The celebrity chef’s company made a pre-tax profit of £500,000 (US$633,000) in the year to August 2018 after making a £3.8 million (US$4.8 million) loss the previous year when the company was hit by a hefty legal bill and the five-month closure of its Plane Food venture at Heathrow Airport’s Terminal 5.
The group, which has only previously made a profit in one year since 2012, hailed a “strong performance” with a 4.3 per cent rise in sales to £53.6 million (US$67.7 million).
The revival of Ramsay’s business comes amid tough times for restaurateurs. Fellow celebrity chef Jamie Oliver’s restaurant business fell into administration last week closing all but three of its 25 UK outlets while other chains in the country have been forced to close outlets.
Ramsay said he planned to expand Street Pizza, his new “bottomless pizza” concept, outside London this year despite “much-maligned market conditions”.
The group currently has 15 restaurants in London, including Pétrus, Bread Street Kitchen and Restaurant Gordon Ramsay, and 23 overseas outlets, including four in Hong Kong.
Lucky Cat has taken 3,000 reservations since opening bookings on May 23 and will include a late bar and two chefs’ tables in the kitchen alongside the main restaurant.
Jamie Oliver ‘devastated’ as empire collapses, 22 UK restaurants to close
The company said it had also invested significantly in its digital promotion strategy, gaining 1.3 million of its own social followers on top of Gordon Ramsay’s personal following of 20 million, and 10 million subscribers on his YouTube channel.
Ramsay said: “Guests do not just expect a good plate of food – we are relentless with our food quality, that is a given. Our guests want to join us for all occasions, be it social or business, and then relax in a great environment.
We have to understand our guests, what they want, where they are heading and we have to head there with them or be left behind.”
