Enterprise boss earns £811k
CHIEF executive of pub group Enterprise Inns Ted Tuppen was handed a total remuneration package of £811,000 last year – even as the pub group’s profits dipped by more than a fifth.
Pre-tax profits at Enterprise dropped from £263m to £208m in the year to September but Tuppen’s pay package was still raised.
Tuppen will effectively receive £16,000 more in pay and perks than in the previous year.
The company is saddled with £3.5bn of debt and has axed its final dividend to investors. However, Tuppen received a £147,000 performance-related bonus on top of his £640,000 salary and pension. There were also £24,000 in other benefits.
Tuppen’s pay and perks deal was revealed as Enterprise’s landlords struggle to keep afloat with 11 pubs closing in London every week.
He said in the report: “The coming year is expected to be equally challenging and given the current economic climate and the planned reduction in the size of our pub estate, we are likely to see some further decline in trading profit in the short term.
“Nevertheless, we remain focused on stabilising performance across the estate, as well as steadily reducing the level of bank debt.”
Enterprise Inns has 7,399 pubs valued at £5.4bn.
The company sold the freeholds of seven London pubs at an auction held by Cushman & Wakefield yesterday, raising £11,887,000.
A total of 368 others were offloaded for £133m in the past year, with at least as many again earmarked to go next year.
Tuppen said last month that there were too many pubs in the UK.