Tortilla secures “exciting pipeline” of 2024 openings
Tortilla says it has secured an “exciting pipeline” of new sites in high-footfall city centre and shopping centre locations.
The Mexican restaurant operator added that it is ahead of its long-term target of 45 new sites by the end of 2026.
In 2023, Tortilla opened seven new sites – including one franchise restaurant – and closed two, bringing its total estate to 87 locations at the end of the year.
The restaurant chain said it was “excited” by its franchise growth opportunities both in the UK and internationally, and said it has four openings lined up in 2024 in collaboration with franchise partner SSP.
In the first half of the year, the operator saw record franchise sales.
This comes a Tortilla releases a trading update for the year ending 31 December 2023, a period during which it expects revenue to have increased to £65.7m, up by 13.8% compared to 2022.
The operator said this figure was slightly below its previous expectations, citing “subdued” customer confidence impacting demand, particularly in the fourth quarter.
Richard Morris, chief executive officer of Tortilla, said: “As a management team we are taking proactive actions to adapt to the changing market environment. We know that in buoyant eating out markets where the Tortilla brand is well known, we outperform. We have a strong portfolio of new sites in high quality locations as well as additional franchise growth opportunities. In addition, we intend to increase marketing investment to improve broader consumer awareness of our brand and fresh, value for money proposition whilst also taking action to optimise the profitability and long-term potential of our delivery channel.”
“We remain as confident and excited as ever about Tortilla’s long-term and sizeable profitable growth opportunities both in the UK and internationally.”