(Alliance News) - XP Factory PLC on Tuesday said 2022 was a "transformational and successful year" as branch openings drove revenue growth.

The Crawley, England-based entertainment company formerly known as Escape Hunt said revenue in 2022 grew to GBP22.8 million from GBP 7.0 million a year prior. Its Escape Hunt branch's revenue was GBP10 million, up 67% from GBP6 million a year before. This accounted for 64% of the group's revenue growth. Its Boom Battle Bar franchise, which opened 27 sites across the UK in 2022, contributed GBP2.9 million in revenue.

Pretax loss, however, widened to GBP1.1 million from GBP885,000 a year before, citing higher branch pre-opening costs of GBP2.0 million compared to GBP103,000 in 2021.

XP factory did not declare a dividend for 2022, unchanged from 2021.

Looking ahead, XP Factory noted strong trading in the first quarter of 2023 and is well-placed to benefit from attractive property opportunities.

Chair Richard Rose said: "I am delighted to be reporting on a transformational and successful year for the group. We set ambitious targets at the start of 2022 to significantly expand our then newly acquired Boom Battle Bar estate from seven sites open when we acquired the business in November 2021 to having 27 Boom sites open by the end of 2022, whilst also expanding our Escape Hunt network.

"Through an enormous effort by the whole team, our target was achieved. Today we have a business which has critical mass and can justifiably claim to a leading experiential leisure business in the UK."

Shares in XP Factory were up 6.6% at 21.85 pence each in London on Tuesday morning.

By Sabrina Penty, Alliance News reporter

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