Growth at Compass drives revenue above pre-Covid levels

Strong growth at Compass Group has resulted in the catering giant reporting revenue above pre-Covid levels for the first half of the year.

The business filed £11.5b in revenue, a 36.3% increase, following organic growth of 37.9% driven by strong performance in North America and Europe with notable volume recovery in the Business & Industry and Education sectors as people returned to the office and students to in-person learning.

Its net new business growth in the first half exceeded the entire 2021 financial year net new business, and Compass reported record new business wins of £2.5b over the last 12 months.

Compass also said its client retention rate was at its highest ever level of 95.8% and the group increased its organic revenue guidance for the year from 20-25% to around 30%, although margin guidance remained unchanged, with full year underlying operating margin expected to be over 6%, exiting the year at around 7%.

Dominic Blakemore, group chief executive, said: "We are mindful of global inflationary pressures, which have been exacerbated by the tragic events in Ukraine. Although we expect inflation to increase and continue at a heightened level in the medium term, we have a resilient business model to help mitigate this challenge. Inflation also provides a further impetus to outsourcing as organisations seek savings and we are capturing this growth opportunity as demonstrated by our record new business wins."