Max’s Group, Inc., the largest casual dining restaurant group in the Philippines, reported that its net income of P281.1 million in the first half of 2022 organically grew by 18 times compared to the same period last year.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, the firm noted that its net income was actually higher at P392.0 million in the first half of 2021 but this included a one-off gain of P377.0 million from the sale of a subsidiary whose primary asset is land.

“We committed to our stakeholders throughout the ongoing global health crisis that we would deliver a business model tuned to be as pandemic-proof as possible,” said MGI Chief Executive Officer Robert F. Trota.

He added that, “Regardless of any volatility in our various markets across the world, we have been disciplined in optimizing both demand for our deep, diverse portfolio of brands, and the efficiency in which we are able to convert revenue into profit.”

Systemwide sales amounted to P8.09 billion in the first half of 2022, a 41 percent growth from the same period last year, despite strict lockdown measures in January due to the Omicron surge.

Relaxation of dine-in restrictions from February onwards caused a significant boost in sales of dine-in brands Max’s Restaurant and Pancake House, supporting the performance of other core brands Yellow Cab Pizza Co. and Krispy Kreme, whose resilience in both delivery and take-out keyed the Group’s performance earlier on in the pandemic.

Consolidated revenues of the Group for the first half of 2022 amounted to P4.98 billion, a 38 percebt growth from P3.62 billion in the same period last year.

Local market sales jumped 45 percent in the first half of 2022 versus the same period last year as consumer confidence, mobility, and economics continue to revive.

Meanwhile, the international business reported a solid 27 percent growth despite labor challenges in the North America market, with new agreements in place to further expand global reach in other markets.

“We are cautiously pleased with the results of the Group throughout 2022 thus far,” said MGI President Ariel P. Fermin.

He added that, “Even with a very muted January that set a challenging tone for the start of the year, the business revolution we orchestrated throughout the pandemic continues to bear fruit in how our organization runs, how our brands perform, how our economic model delivers profit.”

“At an organic level—we are particularly proud of how, in the tail-end of the first half of 2022, our contribution margin, operating income margin, EBITDA margin, and net income margin before tax even outperform 2019 levels,” Fermin noted.

He stressed that, “It is clear to us that even as we continue to make headway in fully recovering our former sales and revenue levels, our optimized profit flow-through makes us an attractive, reliable choice for our shareholders, our business partners, and our employees.”

Second quarter net income outpaced not only its same period performance last year by a factor of four at P239.5 million, as compared to the P55.4 million recorded in 2021 (up 332 percent), but likewise surpassed its bottom line at P240 million as compared to P228 million of the same in the second quarter of 2019.

This profitability exceeded even the healthy 56 percent upswing in systemwide sales — comprised of sales generated by both company-owned and franchised stores — with P4.54 billion captured across the total network of both local and international stores, versus the same period din 2021 of P2.91 billion.

Revenues likewise grew by 58 percent for the period, up from just P1.78 billion in the same quarter of the prior year.