Escape Hunt to reopen sites after ‘strong progress’ amid lockdown
(LON:ESC ), a company which provides ‘escape-the-room’ experiences, said its sites in Basingstoke, Liverpool, Norwich, Reading and Oxford are to reopen on Wednesday.
The move follows the end of the second period of UK Government nationally enforced lockdown and means all sites can reopen on 2 December 2020, other than those in areas designated 'tier 3' under the UK Government's Coronavirus tiered classification system.
That same day, Escape will formally open its newest site in Cheltenham which has been successfully completed on time and within budget during November to open in time.
Cheltenham is the 12th owner-operated site in the UK, and 13th in the portfolio, inclusive of Dubai which re-opened last month and ‘continues to trade in line with expectations.’ Work on the fit-out in Watford, which will be the 14th owner-operated site, also continues in line.
Sites in Birmingham, Birmingham Resorts World, Bristol, Leeds and Manchester will be in tier 3 and will remain closed pending changes to their respective local tier classifications.
Edinburgh, which is not subject to the tier system and was not previously forced to close, is now subject to revised rules in Scotland for which definitive guidance is not yet available.
Shares in Escape Hunt have soared by over 100% since early September 2020 to open 6.06% higher at 17.5p following this morning’s announcement.
As set out in its announcement on 4 November 2020, Escape shifted focus to its digital and remote play games during the lockdown where it has since reported ‘strong progress.’
To date, the business said it has seen ‘a significant increase’ in the level of enquiries and bookings which have been helped by corporates seeking seasonal activities for their staff.
As a result, the Board remains optimistic for the prospects for these digital and remote play games, not only in the run-up to Christmas, but also as a permanent feature of its portfolio.
“The performances of both our recent openings in Norwich and Basingstoke give us cause for optimism for Cheltenham,” said CEO, Richard Harpham on the news and recent trading.
He said, “Whilst the restrictions imposed by the tiered system mean life is not able to return to normal, the strong performance during the schools' half-term week in October, during which a number of sites were subject to the tier 2 or tier 3 restrictions in place at the time, provides a positive indication for prospects over the Christmas and New Year period.”
He added, ‘This will be further supported by the progress we have made with our digital and remote play propositions and we approach the future with cautious optimism."
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