IWG posts record results thanks to hybrid ‘big bang’

GUY TAYLOR

BOOMING demand for hybrid working saw workspace provider IWG, which owns Regus, net a record £1.7bn in system-wide revenue in the first half, up 16 per cent year-on-year.

In results published yesterday, IWG also reported a near 48 per cent yearon-year jump in ebitda to £198m, as the flexi-working specialist benefitted from a global trend towards hybrid business models.

IWG chief exec Mark Dixon hailed the “record” results.

“We continue to grow as expected, producing a record period for IWG with our highest ever revenue in our over 30-year history… We have done this through a combination of higher demand for flexible work products [and] improved pricing and cost discipline,” he said.

He noted the first six months had seen a “continuation of the ‘Big Bang’ we started seeing in 2022, when the continuing impact of the Covid-19 pandemic finally led to the lift-off of the hybrid model that some of us have been antic-

KNOWING ME, KNOWING AUDOO Music licensers partner with ABBA-backed Audoo

standing with the US, Russia and Taiwan remains uncertain,” Emma Rowland, a trade policy advisor at the Institute of Directors, said.

“The pandemic, coupled with the invasion of Ukraine, has exposed vulnerabilities in international supply chains and an over reliance on countries perceived to be high-risk to the UK,” she said.

“Ultimately, firms are pursuing long-term stability in their supply chains, so they can provide certainty to their own end customers.” ipating for many years.”

AUDOO, a music tech company backed by ABBA star Björn Ulvaeus, has partnered with British music licensers to improve royalty distribution to musicians through tech which detects music being played in bars and shops.

Discussing its plans for the year ahead, the FTSE 250 firm said that the majority of its revenues had been “denominated in or linked to US dollars” and, alongside volatility in sterling, this had prompted the board to review IWG’s reporting currency, “irrespective of listing venue”.

In later comments to The Times, however, Dixon said that moving the firm’s London listing was “something the board is thinking about all the time”.

“Most of our customers, most of our users and most of our revenue are from the US; it’s not that there’s a problem with the UK market, it’s that the US may be a more appropriate market,” he

Despite netting record revenues, IWG maintained a “cautiously optimistic” outlook for the year ahead, citing FX headwinds and a “challenging economic and competitive environment” as a result of high Shares finished up one per cent.

Holiday Inn owner says it expects travel to fully recover by 2025 after strong half year revenues

LAURA MCGUIRE

HOLIDAY INN owner

Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG) yesterday reported a 23 per cent rise in revenues in its half year results, with the chain bolstered by a “healthy” demand for travel.

The British hotel group also said operating profit rose 27 per cent to $479m (£375m) up from $377m in the same period last year.

Total revenues rose 24 per cent to $2.2bn and average occupancy levels across its over 6,000 hotels globally