Rutland Partners-owned Pizza Hut has seen annual like-for-like sales rise by 6.2% for the year to 29 November 2015. The firm credits the uplift to the refurbishment of 130 of its 272 restaurants.
During the period, the company saw turnover stand at £225m, while profit before tax was £7.9m, down £1m on 2014. It closed 13 restaurants and plan to close four more underperforming restaurants by the end of the year.
The refurbished restaurants are designed to emphasise the group’s American heritage, and new dishes have been added to the menu, like Philly Cheese Steak and Pulled Pork. Some of the revamped outlets even include cocktail bars.
Beyond the period, Pizza Hut's largest restaurant overhaul has been in Ashford at the Eureka Leisure Park (pictured), where the firm invested £785k. The site, which opened in July, features a contemporary new cocktail bar and full drinks menu.
The group stated that the return on investment is well ahead of target and guest experience surveys are showing significant increase in overall satisfaction, value for money and intent to revisit within the next three months.
Pizza Hut has confirmed that over 70 more restaurants are due to be refurbished before the end of this year.