TGI Friday’s pay bill cuts profit for Jamaican operation
Published:Sunday | April 5, 2020 | 12:00 AM
THE TRENDY sports bar and grill TGI Friday’s in Kingston made a profit of TT$1.6 million, or about J$32 million, in 2019 after menu tweaks, but those earnings were less than the previous year, according to its Trinidadian parent Prestige Holdings.
The fall from $TT$1.8 million in 2018 was “driven by higher labour costs,” said Prestige, which it linked to the full-year impact of the 2018 minimum wage rate increase.
Higher building and equipment maintenance costs also pressured the Jamaican operation’s bottom line, it said.
The Jamaican sales were not disclosed, only its profit. The restaurant has operated from the intersection at Lady Musgrave Road and Hope Road since 2004. Profits have vacillated over the years in Kingston, with the operation entering into a loss in 2013.
Prestige Holdings operates a series of franchises in Trinidad and other Caribbean islands, including KFC, Pizza Hut, Starbucks, Subway and TGI Friday’s. Its subsidiary Prestige Services Limited Incorporated holds the development rights for the TGI Friday’s brand in CARICOM.
Prestige made a profit of TT$35.8 million from revenue of TT$1.1 billion last year. During the financial year, Prestige opened seven new restaurants – two KFCs, two Starbucks, two Pizza Huts, and one TGI Friday’s; and closed two Subway restaurants.
“We ended the year with a total of 129 restaurants,” the company said.