XP Factory PLC on Wednesday said it increased revenue substantially in a ‘transformational’ first half to 2022.

The entertainment company formerly known as Escape Hunt said its loss before taxation was £3.3 million in the six months to June 30, compared to £2.3 million a year before. This mainly stemmed from a big increase in the company’s administrative expenses from £3.4 million to £7.6 million.

However, revenue multiplied to £8.1 million from £1.2 million. Revenue included £3.6 million from Boom Battle Bar owner-operated and franchise activities, compared to none last year. Much of the company’s focus during has been on developing the Boom Battle Bars and integrating the business into the group.

17 UK Boom Battle Bar sites were open at June 30. In November 2021, when XP Factory acquired Boom Battle Bar for £2.2 million, there were just seven.

The 19 owner-operated Escape Hunt venues also reported a significant increase in revenue. The company noted that the majority of the Escape Hunt venues were closed for much of the first half of 2021 due to Covid restrictions.

Performance since the end of June has been encouraging, XP Factory said, with no discernible impact from weakness in consumer demand. It remains focused on providing the ‘best possible customer experience to an ever-growing number of customers across the UK and beyond’.

Looking to the full year, XP Factory warned that its results will be heavily weighted to the final quarter and will be influenced by the dates on which sites currently in build are able to open and the broader strength of pre-Christmas trading. It continues to target 27 site openings for the year, although it admitted that it is very difficult to predict with accuracy when new sites will open.

Chief Executive Richard Harpham commented: ‘2022 represents an important year in our evolution as we continue to build the platform for a sustainable, cash generative and profitable experiential leisure business. With each successive week, Boom’s trading performance reinforces our belief that it is a very attractive proposition, capable of delivering strong margins and an exceedingly attractive return on capital. We are delighted with the progress we have made and believe that by the end of the year, the foundations will be firmly set for the business in 2023 and beyond.’

Shares in XP Factory were trading 0.7% higher at 12.17 pence each on Wednesday afternoon.

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