Fri 16th Jan 2026 - Exclusive: Heartwood Collection on track to achieve £100m of turnover, reports record festive trading, secures new £25m debt facility Exclusive – Heartwood Collection on track to achieve £100m of turnover, reports record festive trading, secures new £25m debt facility: Heartwood Collection, the Alchemy Partners-backed business, has told Propel it is on track to achieve £100m of turnover in the current financial year ending June 2026, reflecting sustained momentum across its estate and on the back of record festive trading. The Richard Ferrier-led business, which operates 34 Heartwood Inns and 13 Brasserie Blanc restaurants across the UK, saw turnover for the year ended 29 June 2025 increase 21.7% to £82.6m (2024: £67.9m), driven by “robust like-for-like growth and the successful integration of new sites”. The business said despite ongoing structural cost pressures in the sector, including the April 2025 national living wage and national insurance increases, site Ebitda rose to £13.3m (2024: £11.7m), supported by “strong guest demand and disciplined operations”. The group said its performance was further reinforced by its annual net promoter score (NPS) of 77%. During the five-week Christmas trading period to 4 January 2026, the group said it achieved “exceptional trading”, with many record trading days and weeks across the business. It said Heartwood Inns led the performance with 8.3% like-for-like growth, which it said reflected strong demand for premium pub dining. The company’s pubs-with-rooms sites achieved average gross weekly sales (AGWS) of £97,000, which it said underlined the strength of the staycation and premium overnight market. The business said Brasserie Blanc delivered strong trading despite wider fine-dining pressures, with an AGWS of £70,000. Group-wide AGWS averaged £70,000 across all sites for the five-week festive period. During the year, Heartwood Collection opened six new sites, including four new pubs with rooms. Post year-end, the business opened The George & Dragon in Marlow, bringing its total to 213 bedrooms. Further stand-alone pubs were added in the 2025 financial year, with the White Hart in Lymington and the Prince of Wales in East Barnet. The group has also added pubs post year end – the Red Lion in Stratford-upon Avon and the Old Crown in Great Bookham – and said both were “trading really positively”. A further 60-bedroom pub-with-rooms site, The Potter’s Heron in Ampfield, Hampshire, is currently under development and scheduled to open this spring. The group is also due to open its 48th site, The Woodman, in Southgate, north London, on Tuesday, 3 February. The group said it is currently under offer on several additional pubs-with-rooms and has clear ambitions to reach 500 bedrooms by June 2027. To support this growth strategy, the group said it had secured additional debt facilities from Heritable Development Finance, which Propel understands stands at £25m. Ferrier said: “The year to June 2025 marked another excellent year of progress for Heartwood, combining sustained sales growth and continued investment in our freehold pubs-with-rooms portfolio. With positive festive trading, a maturing freehold rooms estate and a healthy pipeline for 2026, we are well positioned to build one of the UK’s most admired premium hospitality businesses. These results reflect the extraordinary commitment of our teams across the group, for which I am immensely grateful.” Heartwood Collection features in the Premium Club Turnover & Profits Blue Book, the latest edition of which features 1,194 companies. Heartwood Collection’s turnover of £82.6m is the 157th highest in the database. Companies can now have an unlimited number of people receive access to Propel Premium for a year for £995 plus VAT – whether they are an operator or a supplier. The single subscription rate is £495 plus VAT for operators and £595 plus VAT for suppliers. Email kai.kirkman@propelinfo.com to upgrade your subscription.