Transmetro turnaround

Travelscene International
September 9, 2004

The Australia-wide publicly listed hospitality and leisure group, Transmetro Corporation Limited, reported an annual profit of A$2.270 million for the year ended June 30, 2004, an increase of 819% on the previous year.

Australia owned Transmetro.s operating arm, Metro Hospitality Group, includes a network of properties with over 800 rooms in key locations and major cities, and pubs.

The results include one-off gains of A$1.13 million on the sale of Paddy Maguires Kent Street theme pub and A$0.62 million for the sale of Metro Inn Haberfield.

Excluding one-off items, pre-tax results improved from a loss of A$0.53 million for the previous year to a profit of A$1.3 million for the current year.

Group General Manager, Mr Rajeev Dani, said the impressive figures were a direct result of the company.s strong focus on restructure and expansion, and an aggressive awareness campaign adopted Australia-wide.

He said that the company is operating profitably through good returns from pubs and hotels in Sydney and Perth.

Accommodation properties are located in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane & Gladstone in Queensland as well as Perth & Albany in WA.

The pub division has been operating since 1997, starting with an Irish pub, Paddy Maguire.s in George Street, Sydney. It operates two other pubs under the Paddy Maguire.s brand at Star City Casino, Sydney and Subiaco, Perth, while an English-style pub, branded The Elephant, operates in Cinema Square, Adelaide.

Metro Hospitality Group has been in business for 28 years and is the country.s oldest Australian-owned hotel chain.