Overview
- On Friday, October 2, 2026, Wetherspoon reported revenue up about 5% to roughly £2.2bn while pre-tax profit dropped about 28% to around £58.6–59m for the year to July.
- The company said operating margin narrowed to 5.4% as costs rose sharply, with a £46m jump in wages, a £31m rise in repair bills, a £9m increase in business rates and a 77% surge in energy costs to about £40m.
- Wetherspoon pointed to stronger recent trading as evidence of resilience, citing like-for-like sales growth of 7.7% in August and 8.6% in the nine weeks to late September that it says outperformed the wider pub sector.
- Chairman Sir Tim Martin blamed tax and regulatory increases for squeezing pubs and urged the Treasury, led by John Healey, to refrain from more tax rises and to cut hospitality VAT from 20% to 10%.
- Because Wetherspoon runs low-price venues and thin margins, the group says sustained cost inflation could fuel more closures and job losses on high streets and make upcoming budget decisions especially important for the sector.