Pre-tax losses at the Irish arm of multinational food and beverage firm, SSP (Select Service Partner) led by group CEO Patrick Coveney last year more than tripled to €7.4m.
Formerly the CEO of Greencore, Cork native Patrick Coveney took up the role as group CEO of SSP in 2022 and last year led the business to help achieve revenues increase by 17%to £3.43 billion.
The company is a leading operator of restaurants, bars, cafes and other food and beverage outlets at travel locations across 38 countries across Europe, the Middle East, Asia and North and South America along with the UK.
The Irish arm, Select Service Partner Ireland Ltd (SSPI), operates under a number of well known brands including Burger King, Upper Crust and other concessions at Dublin Airport.
The new accounts filed by (SSPI) show that revenues last year decreased by €3m from €78.3m to €75.3m in the 12 months to the end of September 2024.
The increase in losses arose from a non-cash impairment charge of €5.1m compared to €1.2m under that heading in 2023.
The company recorded an operating loss of €6.86m and net interest payments of €543,087, which resulted in the company recording a pre-tax loss of €7.5m.
The business operated 24 outlets at the end of last September compared to 27 one year prior.
The directors state that sales remained largely stable, with a marginal decrease of 3.8% year on year, driven by the exit of some units.
They state that however passenger numbers increased by 2.3%as air travel continues to face strong demand.
They state that during this time SSP reviewed its portfolio offering to meet this air passenger demand.
The directors state that during the period, the company invested €2.2m “in refreshing and enhancing our units in Dublin Airport, as we focus on ensuring that passengers enjoy the best food travel experience”.
“In FY25, the business continued with the refresh programme, which includes giving our units a new look and feel, such as with the refresh of our Garden Terrace Bar & Kitchen and Upper Crust units, which reopened in March 2025 following extensive renovation works,” they said.
They state that last year, numbers employed reduced from 899 to 714 as staff costs declined from €18.68m to €18.19m.
The company’s rental costs increased from €22.24m to €22.61m, while non-cash depreciation costs totalled €2.7m.
According to the directors, the Ukraine war “continues to be a primary driver of high utility prices, which, together with the increase in labour, raw material and other operational costs continue to put pressure on margins”.
“The higher cost of living is also adversely impacting the purchasing power of the general population. Price increases to offset the impact of cost inflation may cause a decline in penetration of the company’s units in Dublin Airport,” they add.
Reporting by Gordon Deegan
