HOLLYWOOD BOWL’S LUCKY STRIKE AS SALES HIT RECORD

HOLLYWOOD Bowl shrugged off the cost of living crisis as families flocked to bowling alleys for affordable days out, boosting profits and revenue in the first half of its financial year.

The leisure company will be hoping it can continue its lucky strike this summer after it posted sales up 20.7pc to a record £110m for the six months ending March 31, 2023.

Half-year profits swelled almost 8pc to £26.7m, resulting in shares lifting by around 1pc yesterday, helping an 11pc overall uplift this year so far.

Many households have been forced to make tough decisions about booking expensive holidays or purchasing big ticket items such as sofas, after eye-watering increases to energy and fuel costs last year.

But Hollywood Bowl insisted yesterday it was enticing families due to its affordable prices. Nevertheless it has upped the price of a game of bowling by 3.9pc or 20p since 2019 as inflation hit historic highs last year.

Any further price increases would be kept to a minimum over the next year, at between 2.5pc to 3pc where necessary, said boss Stephen Burns.