Endeavour Group has unveiled its first financial results after formally separating from Woolworths Group in June. In FY21, group sales were up 9.3% to $11.6billion; online sales were up 34.7% to $859million; hotels were up 49.1% to 261million; and group EBIT was up 22.1% to $899million. The Group’s net profit for the year after tax was $445million.

Endeavour Group Managing Director & CEO Steve Donohue said: “I am pleased to share our first preliminary results announcement as Endeavour Group, an independent listed business.

“The year was characterised by the disruption of COVID-19 which had a material impact across our business. We had 169 days with one or more of our hotels closed, 83 exposure sites and over 3000 team members impacted by these closures. I’m proud of the way the team demonstrated agility and resilience over this period which not only enabled us to constantly optimise our operations but also raised the bar in terms of innovation and remaining connected to our communities.

“Despite the challenges, our teams managed to continue to improve their customer engagement, lift our Voice of the Customer measure (VOC) from 73 to 75 in the Retail businesses, increase the number of My Dan’s members to 5.5 million, and deliver a solid financial result, increasing EBIT by 22.1% and generating $1.1 billion of operating cash flow. We also grew our network and invested over $300 million of capital into the business to maintain our future growth momentum.”

Endeavour Group said all major categories of drinks were in growth in FY21, with the trend towards spirits continuing. The category grew at more 20% in FY21 following similarly strong growth in FY20. The ongoing shift to premium products was also seen across many categories. There was particularly strong growth in craft beer, Champagne and gin, as well as no-alcohol and low-alcohol alternatives.

Commenting on the outlook for the 2022 financial year Donohue (above) said: “The strength of this year’s result has demonstrated the resilience of our business model and the commitment of our team to living our purpose and values and delivering for their customers and communities. We are excited that we are entering the new year with a robust balance sheet and a significant number of opportunities to create value, including growing our digital engagement, expanding and enhancing our network and optimising our business through a focus on profitability and capital management.

“We remain committed to maintaining the efforts that saw us deliver positive outcomes for our stakeholders in FY21. The recent COVID-19 trading restrictions, which began in June, make it extremely difficult for us to forecast with any degree of certainty how our businesses will perform over the next 12 months. We do know that our teams will continue to adjust and respond to the changing conditions and we will continue to innovate and build for the future beyond COVID-19. We look forward to keeping you updated as we progress on the journey.”

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