Soft drinks giant Britvic has recovered strongly from the effects of the pandemic, with its underlying revenue, margin, and profit all in growth.
On a constant currency basis, the group’s revenue rose 6.6% to £1.41bn over the year to 30 September 2021. This was driven by continued growth in At-Home channels and Out-of-Home demand rebounding in the second half as the Covid-19 restrictions eased.
Meanwhile, adjusted EBIT increased 10.0% to £176.5m with margin increasing 40bps to 12.6%.
In the previous year, Britvic had suffered an 8.6% decline in revenues and a 22.6% drop in earnings after the Out-of-Home drinks market collapsed at the start of the pandemic.
In its core British operation, volumes rose 4.7% and revenues increased 8.0% to £956.1m. Britvic said it saw growth across its portfolio, led by the Pepsi MAX, 7UP free, and Tango brands that grew revenue and retail sales value.
With the lifting of restrictions, brands such as J20 and Fruit Shoot returned to growth and small pack formats and brands such as Lipton, Purdey’s and Aqua Libra, which are sold mostly in immediate consumption pack formats, benefitted. As an example of the rebound in Out-of-Home demand, Lipton saw its revenue increase by 47% in the second half of the year.
Against tough comparables, Robinson’s revenue declined in 2021, although its retail value remained above pre-pandemic levels.
“Our portfolio of trusted family favourite brands has led the growth across our business units, and we continue to access new growth spaces through innovation, the acquisition of Plenish and the relaunch of Rockstar,” said Chief Executive Simon Litherland.
“Our Healthier People, Healthier Planet sustainability programme has also progressed well, with the rollout of recycled PET in GB, and carbon reduction initiatives across the business.”
Looking ahead, the group stated that it was confident in making further progress with revenue, profit and margin growth in 2022 despite inflationary cost pressures.
“While there are multiple operational headwinds leading to increased inflation, we are confident we will mitigate them through a combination of our agile and resilient supply chain, revenue management and cost saving actions,” said Litherland.
