C&C says sales of Magners cider hurt by pubs closing for lockdown

Drinks firm C&C on Wednesday said the shutdown of the pubs industry during the Covid-19 lockdown has dented sales of Magners cider and “materially” impacted the business.

The manufacturer has seen no revenue generated from its on-trade division, which supplies bars, restaurants and hotels, since March, when the hospitality industry had to close sites.

Since then it has seen a surge in demand for its off-trade arm, which sells products to supermarkets and convenience stores.

However the at-home demand was not enough to offset the pain from the hospitality industry shutting down, and total UK sales of Magners fell 7% in April and May.

But chairman Stewart Gilliland said the company “is structurally integral to the markets we serve”, which puts it in a strong position to benefit once pubs reopen.

Full-year sales to February rose 7.8% to €1.7 billion and were in line with forecasts. Shares in C&C gained 14.3p to 212.5p.

The company has written down the value of some parts of the business, as a result of the crisis, and booked a charge of €93 million in the year to February 29.

Since the virus outbreak C&C has implemented a number of measures to help it ride out the crisis, including reducing wages and axing the final dividend.

It also has access to the government’s Covid-19 Corporate Financing Facility scheme if needed.