VAUGHAN, Ont. — Cara Operations Limited has posted strong results for the second quarter of 2016 — reporting the highest quarterly operating EBITDA since the company’s transformation started in 2013.
Cara’s operating EBITDA increased to $32.8 million for the 13 weeks ending June 26, 2016 compared to $28.4 million in 2015, a 15.5-per-cent improvement for the quarter.
System sales also grew in the quarter, up three per cent compared to 2015 to $450.3 million. However, the company experienced a same restaurant sales (SRS) slump, decreasing by two per cent.
“While we are satisfied with total system sales growth of 4.0 per cent year to date, SRS growth of -0.7 per cent fell below our expectations. SRS has been impacted by a poor June overall, challenges in the western provinces, and uneven performance in certain restaurant banners,” says Bill Gregson, CEO. “We are building a strong platform for success and continue to focus on short-term and long-term strategies to improve SRS with restaurant renovations, greater emphasis on exciting food news, better guest experiences, and expanded e-commerce sales through new or improved off-premise applications for most brands over the next 2 years. We will also add several digital marketing initiatives that are expected to launch in 2017 to reach new customer segments.”
