Chicken King’s empire still in the red despite sales passing £3bn

The food and restaurants empire run by the so-called “Chicken King”, and includes 2 Sisters Food Group, has spent another year in the red despite its turnover rising to more than £3bn.

Boparan Holdings has posted a pre-tax loss of £28m for the year to July 29, 2023, compared to the £33.4m it lost during the prior 12 months.

The last time the group made a pre-tax profit was the £52.6m it reported in the year to July 31, 2021.

Boporan Holdings owns 2 Sisters Food Group, Bernard Matthews as well as Slim Chickens, Gourmet Burger Kitchen, Carluccio’s, Ed’s Easy Diner, Fishwork, Cinnamon Collection, Giraffe, Giraffe Stop and Wondertree.

Ranjit Singh Boparan founded 2 Sisters Food Group, which is based in the West Midlands, in 1993.

The wider group operates 15 manufacturing sites in the UK and a further eight in the Netherlands and Poland.

According to newly-filed documents with Companies House, Boporan Holdings continued to make a loss despite its turnover increasing from £2.7bn to just over £3bn in its latest financial year.

“We can handle pretty much whatever comes our way”

Executive chairman Richard Pennycook said: “Over the past three years the group has been impacted by a series of systemic events, starting with Covid, Brexit, the escalation of war in Ukraine and in the most recent year, the rise in inflation and cost-of-living crisis.

“I am incredibly proud of how the entire team has responded to the many challenges and our ability to handle all these headwinds.

“Similar to the rest of the industry, at times that has been extremely tough, but it has shown the resilience of the group and it gives us confidence as a board that we can handle pretty much whatever comes our way.

“We’re looking at a lot of opportunity in the business, not that it’s right sized, to think about investment for the future, capacity for growth, and most importantly driving forward our new sustainability strategy.

“If we enjoy a period of stability with less volatility, then we can see many opportunities ahead and we’re poised to take advantage of those.

“But of course, we also have to reflect on our resilience if we get hit by any other obstacles and our track record over the last three years gives us that confidence.

“So, the board views the future as one of opportunity to make further meaningful progress in delivering our strategic objectives but also one where we are ready if there are continued bumps in the road.”

“Positive start” to new financial year

During the year the average number of people employed by the group fell from 15,258 to 14,997.

Boporan Holdings added that its financial results were “disappointing” but that they were “impacted by significant headwinds”

The group said the rise in its turnover “reflected the recovery of widespread cost inflation” while “stability and operational improvements” are leading to a “stable and sustainable profitability level” for it.

On its outlook, Boporan Holdings added: “We have made a positive start to the new financial year in what continues to be an unpredictable trading environment.

“Our core UK market remains resilient as our customers and the UK consumer continue to recognise the quality and value of our products.

“Looking forward, we have a clear growth strategy and a management team focused on delivering strong results, which alongside out long-standing customer base and breadth and quality of products should enable us to capitalise on the wide range of opportunities we see ahead.”