The Serhs group leaves behind the losses it suffered during the pandemic and which led it to request aid of 34 million euros from Sepi. The significant recovery in tourism and restaurant activity has boosted the company’s business in the last year, with a turnover of 170 million euros and an operating profit (ebitda) of nine million euros compared to the red numbers of 2 .5 million in 2021. Serhs has also made a slight net profit.
“If it weren’t for the increase in costs, such as energy or fuel, we would have closed a spectacular year,” says Jordi Bagó, CEO of Serhs. In 2019, revenues amounted to 270 million euros, although Bagó qualifies that the comparison between one year and the other is not real since in 2021 they modified Damm’s billing model. They went from invoicing the product to only invoicing the logistics cost. The old system would have provided income of 80 million euros. “The comparative reality between the two exercises is a difference of less than 10%,” he adds.
Of the three business branches of the group, hotels and distribution are the ones that have had the best performance. The year has also meant the consolidation of the organizational and business model change that was promoted before the pandemic.
“2022 has gone better than expected, the hotel sector has recovered at great speed and catering has been streamlined; We expected a customer mortality rate of 15% and in the end it was 7%”, says Bagó.
Distribution contributes 65% of Serhs’ income, hotels 15% and catering 20%. However, the recovery of the community service segment has been somewhat less. The contracts already signed have not allowed the unprecedented rise in food prices to be passed on, with which the margins here have been very tight. The company expects to be able to balance prices as contracts are renewed.
The prospects for this 2023 are also positive. The group expects to grow by 10% without taking inflation into account, and to deepen its reverse logistics plan –return of containers– and electrification of the commercial vehicle fleet. In this way, they hope to advance the repayment of the Sepi loan ahead of schedule. They are also interested in adding new three and four star hotels to their portfolio – they have three establishments in Barcelona, ??two rural villas and two other hotels in Brazil. “We are looking for opportunities, although nothing is closed at the moment,” continues Bagó.
