Interim Results

XP Factory PLC

09 December 2025

 

9 December 2025

XP Factory plc

("XP Factory", the "Company" or the "Group")

Unaudited Interim Results

New Banking facilities

Directorate change

XP Factory plc (AIM: XPF), one of the UK's pre-eminent experiential leisure businesses operating the Escape Hunt® and Boom Battle Bar® brands, is pleased to announce its unaudited interim results for the twenty-six weeks ended 28 September 2025 ("H1 FY2026"). 

	H1 FY2026 (£m)	H1 FY2025 (£m)	Change
Revenue	28.2	24.9	+13%
Gross Profit	17.3	15.6	+11%
Pre IFRS 16 Site level EBITDA	6.1	5.6	+8%
Pre IFRS 16 Group Adjusted EBITDA	1.7	1.5	+15%
Post IFRS16 Group Adjusted EBITDA	4.7	3.2	+48%
Adjusted loss per share	(0.71)	(0.87)	+18%
Statutory loss per share	(1.05)	(1.26)	+17%
Pre IFRS16 Cash from operating activities	2.3	2.3	0%
Free cash generation	1.4	1.8	-19%

 FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

·	Group revenue increased 13.1% to £28.2m (H1 2024: £24.9)
	-     Escape Hunt owner operated site revenue increased 12.7% to £7.3m (H1 FY2025: £6.5m)
	-     Boom Battle Bar ("Boom") owner operated revenue increased 16.0% to £20.4m (H1 FY2025: £17.6m)
·	Pre IFRS 16 Group Adjusted EBITDA2 up 15% to £1.7m (H1 FY2025: £1.5m)
·	Pre IFRS16 site level EBITDA up 8% to £6.1m (H1 FY2025: £5.6m)
·	IFRS16 cash generated from operating activities of £2.3m (H1 FY2025: £2.3m)
·	£2.2m invested in growth capex, and £0.5m in maintenance capex
·	£1.4m free cash generated (H1 FY2025 £1.8m)
·	Cash balance at 28 September 2025 of £4.5m (31 March 2025: £1.1m)
·	Net debt at 28 September 2025 of £5.3m (31 March 2025: £4.9m)

OPERATING HIGHLIGHTS

·	Creditable performance amidst a tough market environment
o		Escape Hunt: UK LFL growth up 1.8% in the 26 weeks to 28 September 2025
o		Boom: UK LFL down 6.8% in the 26 weeks to 28 September 2025
·	Escape Hunt owner operated site level EBITDA margins of 40.4% (H1 FY2025: 42.0%)
·	Boom owner operated site level EBITDA margins up 1% to 12.8% (H1 FY2025: 11.8%)
·	New Boom site opened in Reading in May 2025
·	New Escape Hunt opened in Canterbury in May 2025 together with significant expansion at Birmingham Resorts World.

POST PERIOD-END HIGHLIGHTS

·	Strong performance at EH with +8.3% LFL growth in the 9 weeks to 30 November 2025
·	Boom performing in line with a very tough competitive socialising market  at -9.8% LFL growth for the 9 weeks to 30 November 2025, with overall sales +1% ahead of prior year when including the new sites in Reading and Cambridge. Record corporate pre-bookings for Christmas and improved cost controls partly mitigating ongoing softer consumer demand
·	New and more flexible three year £20m revolving credit facility signed with HSBC to refinance existing Barclays facility on more attractive terms
·	Escape Hunt Sheffield opened in October 2025, five further sites in advanced discussions; target to open three more sites by year end
·	Budget outcome expected to be neutral to modestly positive after detailed evaluation with net lower business rates offsetting higher than planned NLW increases
·	Graham Bird, group CFO, has informed the board that he will be retiring from the board at the end of the financial year effective 29 March 2026

Richard Harpham, Chief Executive of XP Factory, commented: "XP Factory group has had another period of double-digit growth generating strong underlying free cashflow in particularly challenging trading conditions. Escape Hunt has bounced back strongly since the first quarter and continues to produce industry leading metrics on all measures. Boom has performed ahead of the experiential leisure industry as a whole over the period, with softer consumer demand being mitigated by improved cost control and record corporate pre-bookings for the crucial Christmas period on which, as ever, the outturn for the financial year is heavily dependent.  Evidencing the attractions of our business model, we have successfully secured new, extended, larger and lower cost banking facilities providing access to liquidity and the flexibility for continued growth and future shareholder value creation."

XP Factory will provide a trading update after the Christmas period in late January / early February 2026 and will schedule meetings with investors at that time, including an online presentation via Investor Meet Company which will be available to retail shareholders.  

Enquiries
XP Factory plc Richard Harpham (Chief Executive Officer)  Graham Bird (Chief Financial Officer)	[phone]
Singer Capital Markets - NOMAD and Broker Peter Steel James Todd	[phone]
IFC Advisory - Financial PR Graham Herring Florence Chandler	[phone]

About XP Factory plc

The XP Factory Group is one of the UK's leading experiential leisure businesses which currently operates two fast growing leisure brands.  Escape Hunt is a global leader in providing escape-the-room experiences delivered through a network of owner-operated sites in the UK, an international network of franchised outlets in five continents, and through digitally delivered games which can be played remotely. 

Boom Battle Bar is a fast-growing network of owner-operated and franchised sites in the UK that combine competitive socialising activities with themed cocktails, drinks and street food in a high energy setting.  Activities include a range of games such as augmented reality darts, Bavarian axe throwing, 'crazier golf', shuffleboard and others.  The Group's products enjoy premium customer ratings and cater for leisure or teambuilding, in small groups or large, and are suitable for consumers, businesses and other organisations. The Company has a strategy to expand the network in the UK and internationally, creating high quality games and experiences delivered through multiple formats and which can incorporate branded IP content. (https://xpfactory.com/)

CHIEF EXECUTIVE'S REPORT

INTRODUCTION

We are pleased to report another period of robust growth and a resilient underlying performance from the group in a period of weak business and consumer confidence. On almost all key measures, the group has made further progress with turnover up 13%, site-level EBITDA up 8%, Pre IFRS16 Adjusted EBITDA up 15% and loss per share reduced by 18%.  

Cash generation has remained strong, with £2.3m cash generated from operations (after rent payments), and £1.3m free cash generated after maintenance capital expenditure and interest payments.  The performance comes notwithstanding the seasonal nature of the industry which is weighted heavily to the second half of the year.

The financial position of the group has also been further strengthened through the refinancing of our existing £10m bank facility with a new £20m facility from HSBC on substantially more attractive terms. Details are set out below.

The Christmas trading period remains critically important to the full year's results.  So far, Escape Hunt is seeing strong like-for-like growth. Within Boom, pre-booked revenue for 2025 Christmas season has been at record levels, exceeding what was achieved in 2024.  Discretionary in venue ('consumer') spending within Boom in the key busy weeks has so far been lower than in the prior year, a pattern consistent with what we can see within the industry and have been experiencing throughout the financial year to date. We will report on the performance over Christmas in late January / early February 2026.

As we move forward, focus remains on the opportunity to roll out further Escape Hunt and Boom sites where appropriate.  Whilst we have set ambitious roll out targets, the board remains focused on its capital allocation decisions, including the potential to return cash to shareholders through share buybacks.

ESCAPE HUNT

Owner Operated

Escape Hunt has continued to prove itself as a resilient and remarkably consistent business.  Turnover grew 13% to £7.3m (H1 FY2025 £6.5m), and site level Pre IFRS16 Adjusted EBITDA was £3.0m, representing a 40.4% margin.  After a challenging first quarter, the like-for-like performance has rebounded strongly from -3.5% in Q1 to 6.8% in Q2.  This has continued into Q3 with LFL growth in the 9 weeks to 30 November further increased to 8.3%.

Maintaining site level EBITDA margins in excess of 40% has been a welcome achievement in the face of significant labour cost increases driven by increases in both the National Living Wage and employer's national insurance from April this year. Labour cost ratios continue to run at higher levels than in prior years as it has been difficult to fully pass on the cost increases.  However, cost controls in other parts of the business have mitigated the impact enabling us to maintain a healthy margin at site level.

Pleasingly the brand continues to attract exceptionally good customer reviews (99% aggregated customer satisfaction reviews scores) and in all metrics we believe Escape Hunt is a standout performer and leader in its class.

A new site was opened in Canterbury in May 2025 and in August we opened an extension to our site at Birmingham Resorts world. Both are performing in line with similar previous sites.  Further progress has also been made on our library of intellectual property with a new game, Jewel of India, launched in three locations.  We have another exciting theme coming soon!

Since the period end a further site has opened in Sheffield, whilst sadly we had to close our Birmingham Central site, which was the very first Escape Hunt owner operated site to have opened in the UK, as the scheme in which it was located closed down. We have a strong pipeline of new sites in progress, including a potential site to replace the closure in Birmingham, and target to be substantially complete / have opened  three further sites by the end of the financial year. 

As at 8 December 2025, we have 27 owner operated Escape Hunt sites, including overseas sites in Paris, Brussels and Dubai.

 Franchise

Escape Hunt franchise revenue was broadly flat at £0.3m in the period.  The estate reduced by one to a total of twenty.

BOOM BATTLE BARS

Owner operated

The Boom Battle Bar estate has performed creditably in a challenging environment.  Whilst UK like-for-like growth for the period was negative 6.8%, the performance reflects favourably compared to the industry-wide negative like-for-like growth of 8.4%[1].  Turnover grew 16% to £20.4m, reflecting the full year effects of sites opened and acquired in the prior year together with a new site opened in the period.

Site level EBITDA grew 26% to £2.6m, representing margin of 12.8%, up from 11.8% in the six months to September 2025.  This improvement was achieved through cost improvements offsetting the impact of negative like-for-like sales and increased labour costs, which has been material since the increases in national insurance and NLW in April 2025, as well as a reduction in operating losses from previously acquired franchise sites which diluted the margin in the comparable period.  The better terms achieved with a major supplier has led to a significant increase in rebates and listing fees which have benefitted the Group in the period, as well as improved cost of goods. These are ongoing benefits which will continue to help offset other cost increases.

Whilst Escape Hunt's like-for-like growth has bounced back after a tough Q1, Boom has continued to experience mid to high single digit negative like-for-like performance. Pre-booked revenue over the all-important Christmas period has been at record levels, offsetting a weaker consumer performance and lower in-venue spend. 

We opened a new site in Reading in May 2025.  The site has performed exceptionally well, outperforming against expectations and offsetting some of the impact of negative like-for-like performances elsewhere in the estate.  Similarly, our site in Cambridge which opened in December 2024 has continued to perform strongly. Our expansion strategy for the brand is focused on the acquisition of more select sites located in higher footfall areas. 

We have made progress dealing with underperforming sites and since the period end have reached agreement to terminate the lease of our Boom site in Swindon on reasonable terms within the costs previously provided, and are close to closing a further underperforming site without significant cost. 

Consumer ratings continue to provide an industry-leading review score of 97%.  We remain focused on delivering best in class customer experiences and believe these will underpin the success of the business in the longer term.  After a period of rapid growth, there are signs that the rate of capacity growth in the industry is slowing and, in some cases, capacity is coming out of the market.  The Escape Room industry experienced similar trends in the early 2020's and Escape Hunt has emerged a clear industry leader, and we are therefore optimistic that Boom will benefit from a similar industry consolidation and emerge as a leading player.

Franchise

The Boom franchise estate delivered £0.2m revenue, down from £0.5m in the prior year due to the acquisition of 5 franchise sites last year.  As at 8 December 2025, the estate comprised 5 UK franchise sites.

STRATEGY

Growth targets

We have previously detailed our plans to continue to expand the business organically through expansion of both the Escape Hunt and Boom businesses in the UK. The strategy focuses around three pillars: site expansion, strong unit economics and leveraging central costs. During the period we undertook third party research to test our assumptions regarding the opportunities for both brands.  The results of that work have conclusively validated our belief in the size and scope of the opportunity in the UK. Furthermore, the results in the period have demonstrated that, notwithstanding the substantial cost increases brought about by the increases in employment costs in April 2025, unit economics for both brands remain highly attractive.  We have also been able to maintain greater efficiency within our central cost base, with central costs as a percentage of revenue reducing from 17% in H1FY2025 to 15% in the current period.

We therefore continue to see a clear medium-term opportunity to achieve £100m run-rate turnover delivering £15m group pre IFRS16 EBITDA.  The route to this is through further investment in sites, focusing on Escape Hunt venues where performance has been extraordinarily consistent across the estate, whilst targeting fewer but higher profile sites for Boom. 

The choices the board must make in doing this relate to timing and appetite for risk associated with opening new sites, the use of debt to fund growth, and general consumer sentiment.  Alongside this we have a business generating a highly attractive free cashflow return on equity at the current share price at arguably lower risk.  In the current climate, with weak consumer sentiment and industry capacity growth slowing or declining, the urgency to roll out new sites has diminished, which, together with the attractive free cash returns, gives greater weight to the argument supporting the use of capital towards share buyback. The board is therefore actively considering allocating an element of capital to share buybacks whilst returns remain attractive.  This would mean  a commensurate moderation of the pace of roll out over the next twelve months, whilst retaining flexibility to reallocate capital as deemed appropriate. Subject to market conditions and the relative returns from further buybacks versus new site openings, we would then expect to accelerate roll out of new sites towards the back end of the next three financial years. More detail will be provided in the trading update in late January / early February.   

Other

We have continued to make good progress in other areas, with our new ERP system which went live in in Q1 FY2026 already delivering clear benefits across the network in terms of cost controls and adoption of best practices.  The new system has also allowed us to align our accounting periods to a weekly cycle, and for this reason the current reporting period is for a 26 week period whereas the comparative was for six months. The Company's current financial year will be for the 52 weeks ending on 29 March 2026. Further progress has also been made on our technology strategy with the imminent launch of a loyalty app together with further enhancements to our proprietary game management software.

RENEWED AND IMPROVED BANK FACILITIES

We are delighted to be able to confirm that the Group has signed a new £20 million revolving credit facility with HSBC, completion of which is subject only to satisfaction of largely administrative conditions precedent.

The new facility replaces the existing 2-year £10 million RCF entered into on 7^th October 2024 and is on significantly improved terms:

·      3-year facility with 2 x one year extension options (subject to renewed credit approval), replacing the existing facility which expires Oct 2026

·      Margin of 260 bps over SONIA (versus 450 bps over bank rate on existing facility)

·      Availability fee of 104 bps on unutilised balance (versus 180 bps)

·      Optional further £5m accordion facility (subject to renewed credit approval)

·      Simplified covenant package

The improved size, term and costs reflect the ongoing improvement and maturity of the group's operations and provide significant further scope to pursue our strategic aims.  Whilst the board's intention is to use debt prudently, targeting an average pre IFRS16 Debt:EBITDA ratio of c.1.0x, the additional facility and headroom secures the future bank funding required to support growth, provides significant additional headroom and in so doing gives greater flexibility to the board's capital allocation decisions.

BOARD CHANGES

After six years and a successful transformation of the group since joining, Graham Bird, the Group's Chief Financial Officer, has informed the board of his decision to retire from the board effective 29 March 2026 in order to devote more time to his other interests.   

The Company has a strong finance team and the capabilities exist within the business to allow natural succession of the role. Graham will move to a part time role in the new year to support the transition. Initially Dominic Richards, Group strategy and corporate finance director will take on a higher profile role with responsibility for business planning and performance as well as leading on the financial aspects of investor communications. Dominic joined XP Factory in May 2023, with 8 years of public markets experience, including as investment partner at Rye Capital LLP, a $1bn European Equities fund. He will work closely with Owain Loft, the group Finance Director, who will have full responsibility for the core finance function.  Owain Loft joined XP Factory in May 2024 having previously been Finance Director at the experiential leisure business Clays.  Both Dominic and Owain will have non-board positions reporting directly to the CEO.

Graham has played a seminal role in the development of the Group during his six years as Chief Financial officer.  He joined in January 2020 when the group was in its infancy, and shortly before the incredibly difficult period under COVID restrictions.  With his leadership and support, the group was able to successfully navigate that difficult period and subsequently acquire and develop the Boom Battle Bar business whilst concurrently growing Escape Hunt. In the six years of Graham's tenure as CFO, the group has been transformed, and the board would like to thank him for his leadership and contribution during this time.

On 29 September, the Company announced that Richard Rose would be standing down as chairman. May 2026 will mark Richard's ninth anniversary as Non-Executive Chairman and his decision to stand down is in line with best practice under the QCA Corporate Governance Code.  A process is currently underway to appoint a successor and further announcements will be made in due course.

FINANCIAL REVIEW

Financial performance

Group revenue in the twenty-six weeks to 28 September 2025 was £28.2m (six months to Sep 2024: £24.9m).  Escape Hunt owner operated revenue was £7.3m, up £0.8m (12.7%) on the prior year. The increase came from positive like-for-like growth of £0.1m with £0.7m impact of Escape Hunt openings in the prior year and from the new site opened in May.  Boom owner operated revenue grew £2.8m (16%) to £20.4m.  The increase comprised £4.0m from sites opened or acquired in the prior year together with turnover from new sites opened in the current period offsetting a £1.2m decline in like-for-like sales. Franchise sales fell from £0.8m to £0.5m largely due to the acquisition of franchise sites during the last financial year.

Group Adjusted EBITDA pre IFRS16 rose 15.5% to £1.7m an increase of £1.5m over the six months to 30 September 2024.  Adjusted EBITDA after IFRS16 was £4.7m, up 48% compared to the £3.2m reported in the six months to September 2024, benefitting from a one-off £0.7m IFRS adjustment. 

£487k of expenditure in the period related to pre-opening costs covering the new Boom site in Reading and new Escape Hunt sites in Canterbury and Sheffield, and the work done in an adjacent unit at Escape Hunt Birmingham before its opening.  £66k site closure costs relate to the closure of Escape Hunt Birmingham Central, together with costs relating to the Boom site in Swindon which closed to the public in March 2025.  We have since reached agreement with the landlord to surrender the lease, the costs of which have been fully provided for in prior periods.

At a site level, Escape Hunt owner operated segment continued to perform strongly, delivering site-level pre IFRS16 EBITDA of £3.0m at a margin of 40.4%. The increase in NLW and employer's national insurance contributions in April 2025 has impacted margins, although savings in other areas are expected to mitigate this increase over time.  With the traditionally busier second half ahead, we expect margins to improve for the full year. Boom generated £2.6m of site level pre IFRS16 EBITDA, up 26% compared to the prior year (H1 FY2025 £2.1m) at a margin of 12.8% (H1 FY2025 11.8%), likewise reflecting higher labour costs, but more efficient cost control at site level. In the case of Boom we have been able to offset a greater proportion of costs in other areas, notably through improved terms with suppliers.  Similar to in the prior year, the margin reflects the seasonality in Boom's business as well as an element of dilution from loss making sites in H1, although the impact of loss making sites has been reduced compared to the prior period. 

26 weeks to 28 September 2025	Escape Hunt	Escape Hunt	Boom	Boom		H1 FY2026
	Owned	Franchise	Owned	Franchise	Unallocated	£'000
Sales	7,336	264	20,382	230	-	28,211
Gross profit	5,235	264	11,532	229	-	17,259
Pre IFRS 16 Adjusted site level EBITDA	2,964	264	2,608	230	-	6,065
Site level EBITDA margin	40.4%	100.0%	12.8%	100.0%	na	21.5%
Centrally incurred costs	(887)	(9)	(703)	(1)	(2,764)	(4,364)
Pre-IFRS Adjusted EBITDA	2,076	255	1,905	229	(2,764)	1,701
IFRS adjustments (net of pre-opening)	624		2,387	-	-	3,012
Post IFRS 16 Adjusted EBITDA	2,700	255	4,293	229	(2,764)	4,712

Six months to 30 September 2024	Escape Hunt	Escape Hunt	Boom	Boom		H1 FY2025
	Owned	Franchise	Owned	Franchise	Unallocated	£'000
Sales	6,510	292	17,555	538	-	24,895
Gross profit	4,648	292	10,150	538	-	15,628
Pre IFRS 16 Adjusted site level EBITDA	2,733	272	2,069	538	-	5,612
Site level EBITDA margin	42%	93%	12%	100%		23%
Centrally incurred costs	(946)	(2)	(475)	-	(2,716)	(4,139)
Pre-IFRS Adjusted EBITDA	1,787	270	1,594	538	(2,716)	1,473
IFRS adjustments (net of pre-opening)	321	-	1,380	-	-	1,738
Post IFRS 16 Adjusted EBITDA	2,108	270	2,974	538	(2,715)	3,174

Central costs of £4.3m represent a 5% increase on the six-month period to 30 September 2025, reflecting cost savings initiated a year ago to curb cost growth offset by inflation and NI increases earlier in the year.  

Interest costs of £386k reflect the utilisation of our bank facility with Barclays, signed in October 2024.   

Unaudited Group operating loss was £11k (H1 FY2025: loss £0.8m) and the loss after tax was £1.8m (H1 FY2025: loss £2.2m) leading to a reduction in the loss per share from 1.26p to 1.05p.  The adjusted loss per share improved 18% from 0.87p to 0.71p.

Cashflow

The Group generated £4.8m of cash from operations (H1 FY2025: £4.2m) on a post IFRS16 basis, and £2.3m pre IFRS16 (H1 FY2025: £2.3m), demonstrating the strong cashflow characteristics of the business.  £2.8m was invested in plant and equipment and intangibles, offset by £0.5m landlord contributions received. This investment comprised capital expenditure of £1.2m within Boom owner-operated sites, of which £0.3m represented maintenance capex, capital expenditure of £1.4m in Escape Hunt owner operated sites, of which maintenance capex was £0.1m, and £0.1m of group capital expenditure.

£0.8m of loan repayments were made, predominantly vendor and fit out finance, and interest payments totalled £0.4m.  Rental payments, classified under IFRS16 as capital and interest payments totalled £2.5m. 

Since the period end, the Group has refinanced its revolving credit facility (RCF) with a new £20m RCF with HSBC, details of which are provided above. £9.0m of the original Barclays facility was drawn at period end, of which £3m was repaid in November 2025 leaving £6.0m drawn at the date of this report. 

Cash at 28 September 2025 was £4.5m, offset by £9.8m of debt leaving net debt of £5.3m, an increase of £0.4m over the net debt position at 31 Mar 2025 (£4.9m).

Financial position

Movements on the balance sheet largely reflect the capital investment and related funding undertaken during the period. 

Current assets increased to £11.3m, driven by an increase in cash and receivables (landlord contributions and supplier related rebates and listing fees).    Net current liabilities reduced from £10.6m to £5.4m, strengthening the group's overall financial position.

Net assets as at 28 September 2025 stood at £21.9m (31 March 2025: £23.8m).

GOING CONCERN

As detailed in note 2 to the Interim Financial Statements, the Directors are satisfied that the Group has adequate resources to continue in operation for the foreseeable future, a period of at least 12 months from the date of this report. 

POST PERIOD END TRADING AND OUTLOOK

The group has delivered a robust performance in the period amidst tough conditions.  Escape Hunt's performance has bounced back strongly after a challenging first quarter.  Like-for-like sales growth in the thirteen weeks to 28 September was 6.8% and this has improved further to 8.3% in the nine weeks to 30 November 2025. Cost savings at site level are largely offsetting the increase in labour costs such that the division is generating strong margins ahead of our internal benchmarks.

Boom, which has traded better than the experiential leisure market as a whole in the period, has nevertheless experienced ongoing negative like-for-like sales trends against a strong prior year comparative. Corporate pre-bookings for the critical Christmas weeks are significantly ahead of prior year, partly offsetting reduced levels of consumer spend.   Improved terms achieved with drinks suppliers together with effective cost controls at site level are mitigating the impact and have helped and will continue to help site level margins.  The outcome for the full year is heavily dependent on the final weeks before Christmas and, in the case of Escape Hunt, the two weeks following Christmas.  We will be providing an update on trading in late January / early February 2026.

Richard Harpham 

Chief Executive Officer

8 December 2025

Note on alternative performance measures (APMs) 

The Group uses APMs alongside statutory measures throughout the interim report ("Report").  The APMs are not intended to replace statutory financial measures but are provided for the following reasons:

1.     to provide users of the Report with a clear view of what the Company consider to be its underlying operations and enabling a consistent comparison over time as well as across the industry and sector

2.     to provide additional information to users the Report about the key performance indicators used in the business consistent with the measures used by the Company leadership

APM	Reason for use		H1 FY2026 £m	H1 FY2025 £m
Adjusted EBITDA	1,2	Operating profit	(0.01)	(0.79)
		Depreciation and amortisation	3.95	3.09
		(Profit) / Loss on disposal of assets	0.00	0.07
		Branch closure costs and dilapidations provision	0.194	0.108
		Contract termination and other exceptional costs	0.05	0.40
		Share-based payment expense	0.02	0.02
		Branch pre-opening costs	0.49	0.31
		IFRS 9 provisions	0.03	(0.02)
		Foreign currency gains / (losses)	(0.01)	(0.01)
		Adjusted EBITDA	4.71	3.17
Adjusted Pre IFRS16 EBITDA	1,2	Adjusted EBITDA	4.71	3.17
		IFRS 16 adjustments	(3.01)	(1.70)
		Adjusted Pre-IFRS 16 EBITDA	1.70	1.47
Adjusted operating profit	1	Operating profit	(0.01)	(0.79)
		Pre-Opening costs	0.49	0.31
		Exceptional costs / income	0.11	0.40
		Adjusted Operating profit	0.59	(0.08)
Adjusted EPS	1	Adjusted Operating profit	0.59	(0.08)
		Interest	(1.83)	(1.41)
		Tax	0.00	0.00
		Adjusted Profit after tax	(1.24)	(1.50)
		Weighted average shares in issue	175.2	174.9
		Adjusted EPS	(0.71)	(0.87)
Pre IFRS16 Cash from operations	1,2	Cash Generated in operating activities	4.8	4.2
		Finance lease payments	(2.5)	(1.9)
		Pre IFRS16 Cash from operating activities	2.3	2.3
Free Cashflow	1,2	Pre IFRS16 Cash from  operating activities	2.3	2.3
		Maintenance capital expenditure	(0.5)	(0.3)
		Net interest paid	(0.4)	(0.2)
		Free cashflow	1.4	1.8

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME

FOR THE PERIOD ENDED 28 SEPT 2025

					26 weeks ended	Six months ended
					28 Sept 2025	30 Sept 2024
	Note				Unaudited	Unaudited
					£'000	£'000
Continuing operations
Revenue					28,211	24,895
Cost of sales					(10,952)	(9,267)
Gross profit					17,259	15,628
Other income					151	-
Administrative expenses					(17,421) )	(16,414) )
Operating loss					(11)	(785)
Adjusted EBITDA					4,712	3,173
Amortisation of intangibles					(121)	(77)
Depreciation					(3,827)	(3,013)
Dilapidations provision					(128)	(108)
Loss on disposal of tangible assets					-	(71)
Contract termination, branch closure and other exceptional costs					(111)	(384)
Branch pre-opening costs					(487)	(307)
Provision against loan to franchisee					-	(12)
Foreign currency gains / (losses)					7	13
IFRS 9 provision for guarantee losses					(33)	22
Share-based payment expense					(23)	(22)
Operating loss					(11)	(786)
Interest received					18	43
Interest expense					(386)	(195)
Lease finance charges	13				(1,464)	(1,261)
Loss before taxation					(1,843)	(2,199)
Taxation	7				1	(8)
Loss after taxation					(1,842)	(2,207)
Other comprehensive income:
Items that may or will be reclassified to profit or loss:
Exchange differences on translation of foreign operations					(17)	4
Total comprehensive loss					(1,859)	(2,203)
Loss attributable to:
Equity holders of XP Factory plc					(1,842)	(2,203)
					(1,842)	(2,203)
Total comprehensive loss attributable to:
Equity holders of XP Factory plc					(1,859)	(2,203)
					(1,859)	(2,203)
Loss per share attributable to equity holders:
Basic (Pence)	6				(1.05)	(1.26)

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION

AS AT 28 SEPT 2025

				As at 20122012		As at 20122012
				28 Sept		31 March
				2025		2025
	Note			Unaudited		Unaudited
				£'000		£'000
ASSETS
Non-current assets
Property, plant and equipment	8			25,399		25,178
Right-of-use assets	9			25,897		26,858
Intangible assets	10			21,993		23,673
Rent deposits and other				336		113
				73,625		75,822
Current assets
Inventories				484		495
Trade receivables				1,810		843
Other receivables and prepayments				4,511		3,357
Cash and bank balances				4,523		1,095
				11,328		5,790
TOTAL ASSETS				84,953		81,612
LIABILITIES
Current liabilities
Trade payables				3,180		3,663
Contract liabilities				2,452		2,153
Other loans	14			727		1,140
Lease liabilities	13			2,700		2,419
Other payables and accruals				7,610		6,714
Provisions	12			73		294
				16,742		16,383

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION AS AT 28 SEPT 2024 (continued)

					As at		As at
					28 Sept		31 March
					2025		2025
	Note				Unaudited		Unaudited
					£'000		£'000
Non-current liabilities
Contract liabilities					1,358		597
Provisions	12				1,500		1,175
Other loans	14				9,084		4,847
Deferred tax liability					4		5
Lease liabilities	13				34,318		34,822
-
					46,264		41,446
TOTAL LIABILITIES					63,006		57,829
NET ASSETS					21,947		23,783
EQUITY
Capital and reserves attributable to equity holders of XP Factory plc
Share capital	15				2,190		2,190
Share premium account					-		-
Merger relief reserve					-		-
Accumulated profits					19,762		21,604
Currency translation reserve					(435)		(418)
Capital redemption reserve					46		46
Share-based payment reserve					384		361
TOTAL EQUITY					21,947		23,783

           

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN EQUITY

FOR THE SIX MONTHS ENDED 28 SEPT 2025

	Share capital	Share premium account	Merger relief reserve	Currency translation reserve	Capital redemption reserve	Share-based payment reserve	Accumulated losses	Total
Six months ended 28 Sept 2025	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Balance as at 1 April 2025	2,182	48,832	-	(387)	46	334	(28,184)	22,823
Loss for the period	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	(1,842)
Other comprehensive income	-	-	-	(17)	-	-	-	-
Total comprehensive loss	-	-	-	(17)	-	-	-	(1,842)
Share-based payment charge	-	-	-	-	-	23	-	23
Transactions with owners	-	-	-	-	-	23	-	23
Balance as at 28 Sept 2025	2,190	-	-	(435)	46	384	-	19,762

 

	Share capital	Share premium account	Merger relief reserve	Currency translation reserve	Capital redemption reserve	Share-based payment reserve	Accumulated losses	Total
Six months ended 30 Sept 2024	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Balance as at 1 April 2024	2,182	48,832	-	(391)	46	312	(25,977)	25,004
Loss for the period	-	-	-	-	-	-	(2,207)	(2,207)
Other comprehensive income	-	-	-	4	-	-	-	4
Total comprehensive loss	-	-	-	4	-	-	(2,207)	(2,203)
Share-based payment charge	-	-	-	-	-	22	-	22
Transactions with owners	-	-	-	-	-	22	-	22
Balance as at 30 Sept 2024	2,182	48,832	-	(387)	46	334	(28,184)	22,823

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS

FOR THE PERIOD ENDED 30 SEPT 2025

						26 weeks ended	Six months ended
						28 Sept 2025	30 Sept 2024
						Unaudited	Unaudited
Cash flows from operating activities	Note					£'000	£'000
Loss before income tax						(1,843)	(2,199)
Adjustments:
Depreciation of property, plant and equipment	8					2,485	1,842
Depreciation of right-of-use assets	9					1,342	1,171
Amortisation of intangible assets	10					121	77
Provision against non-current assets						-	12
Loss on write-off of property, plant and equipment							71
Share-based payment expense						23	22
Foreign currency movements						(8)	24
Lease interest charges	12					1,464	1,261
Dilapidations provision	12					128	108
Provisions for guarantee losses						33	(22)
Interest expense / (income)						368	153
Operating cash flow before working capital changes						4,113	2,520
Decrease in trade and other receivables						(2,327)	566
Increase in inventories						11	11
Increase in trade and other payables						1,794	632
Increase in provisions						(57)	-
Increase / (decrease) in deferred income						1,309	464
Cash generated / (used) in operations						4,843	4,193
Income taxes paid						-	(16)
Net cash generated / (used) in operating activities						4,843	4,177
Cash flows from investing activities
Purchase of property, plant and equipment	8					(2,711)	(3,520)
Landlord incentives received						475	445
Purchase of intangibles	10					(71)	(87)
Receipt / (payment) of deposits						(16)	-
Movement on loans to franchisees						-	-
Acquisition of business, net of cash acquired						-	(100)
Interest received						18	43
Net cash used in investing activities						(2,305)	(3,219)
Cash flows from financing activities
Proceeds from issue of ordinary shares	13					-	-
Interest payments						(386)	(195)
Finance lease payments	12					(2,543)	(1,927)
New loans drawn						4,670	146
Repayment of loans						(846)	(1,055)
						(	(
Net cash generated / (used) from financing activities						895	(3,031)
Net increase / (decrease) in cash and bank balances						3,433	(2,073)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period						1,095	3,935
Exchange rate changes on cash held in foreign currencies						(5)	(9)
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period						4,523	1,853

 

NOTES TO THE UNAUDITED INTERIM REPORT

1.         General information

The Company was incorporated in England on 17 May 2016 under the name of Dorcaster Limited with registered number 10184316 as a private company with limited liability under the Companies Act 2006. The Company was re-registered as a public company on 13 June 2016 and changed its name to Dorcaster Plc on 13 June 2016. On 8 July 2016, the Company's shares were admitted to AIM.

Until its acquisition of Experiential Ventures Limited on 2 May 2017, the Company was an investing company (as defined in the AIM Rules for Companies) and did not trade. 

On 2 May 2017, the Company ceased to be an investing company on the completion of the acquisition of the entire issued share capital of Experiential Ventures Limited. Experiential Ventures Limited was the holding company of the Escape Hunt Group, the activities of which related solely to franchise.

On 2 May 2017, the Company's name was changed to Escape Hunt plc and became the holding company of the enlarged Escape Hunt Group. Thereafter the group established the Escape Hunt owner operated business which operates through a UK subsidiary. All of the Escape Hunt franchise activity was subsequently transferred to a UK subsidiary. On 22 November 2021, the Company acquired BBB Franchise Limited, together with its subsidiaries operating collectively as Boom Battle Bars.  At the same time, the Group took steps to change its name to XP Factory Plc with the change taking effect on 3 December 2021.

XP Factory Plc currently operates two fast growing leisure brands.  Escape Hunt is a global leader in providing escape-the-room experiences delivered through a network of owner-operated sites in the UK, an international network of franchised outlets in Europe, Australia and North America, and through digitally delivered games which can be played remotely. 

Boom Battle Bar is a fast-growing network of owner-operated and franchise sites in the UK that combine competitive socialising activities with themed cocktails, drinks and street food in a high energy, fun setting.  Activities include a range of games such as augmented reality darts, Bavarian axe throwing, 'crazier golf', shuffleboard and others.

The Company's registered office is Ground Floor and Basement Level, 70-88 Oxford Street, London, England, W1D 1BS.

The consolidated interim financial information represents the unaudited consolidated results of the Company and its subsidiaries, (together referred to as "the Group"). The Consolidated Interim Financial Statements are presented in Pounds Sterling, which is the currency of the primary economic environment in which the Company operates.

2.         Basis of preparation

These interim consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with IAS 34 Interim Financial Reporting. They do not include all disclosures that would otherwise be required in a complete set of financial statements and should be read in conjunction with the 2024/25 annual report. The statutory financial statements for the period ended 31 March 2025 were prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006. The auditors reported on those financial statements; their Audit Report was unqualified.

These interim consolidated financial statements have been prepared for the period 1 April 2025 to 28 September 2025 as the group is undergoing a move away from monthly reporting towards the 4-4-5 period reporting more often used by retail companies. The comparative six months represents a slightly different period therefore but the directors do not believe this difference is material for the purposes of analysis.

The interim financial information is unaudited and does not constitute statutory accounts as defined in the Companies Act 2006.

The interim financial information was approved and authorised for issue by the Board of Directors on 8 December 2025.

3.          Going concern

The financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis which contemplates the continuity of normal business activities and the realisation of assets and the settlement of liabilities in the ordinary course of business.

The directors have assessed the Group's ability to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future in accordance with the Financial Reporting Council's Guidance on the going concern basis of accounting and reporting on solvency and liquidity risks issued in April 2016.

The Board has prepared detailed cashflow forecasts covering a 54 month period from the reporting date.  The forecasts take into account the Group's plans to continue to expand the network of both Boom Battle Bar and Escape Hunt sites through organic growth.  The forecasts consider downside scenarios reflecting the potential impact of an economic slowdown, delays in the roll out of sites and inflationary pressures.  Based on the assumptions contained in the scenarios considered and taking into account mitigating actions that could be taken in the event of adverse circumstances, the directors consider there are reasonable grounds to believe that the Group will be able to pay its debts as and when they become due and payable, as well as to fund the Group's future operating expenses. The going concern basis preparation is therefore considered to be appropriate in preparing these financial statements.

4.         Significant accounting policies

The Company has applied the same accounting policies, presentation, methods of computation, significant judgements and the key sources of estimation of uncertainties in its interim consolidated financial statements as in its audited financial statements for the period ended 31 March 2025, which have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards in accordance with international accounting standards in conformity with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.

5.         Segment information

Operating segments are reported in a manner consistent with the internal reporting provided to the chief operating decision-maker. The chief operating decision-maker, who is responsible for allocating resources and assessing performance of the operating segments, has been identified as the group of executive directors and the chief executive officer who make strategic decisions.

Management considers that the Group has four operating segments. Revenues are reviewed based on the nature of the services provided under each of the Escape Hunt and Boom Battle Bar brands as follows:

1.     The Escape Hunt franchise business, comprising 20 sites, where all franchised branches are operating under effectively the same model;

2.     The Escape Hunt owner-operated branch business, which as at 28 Sept 2025 consisted of 23 Escape Hunt sites in the UK, one in Dubai, one in Paris and one in Brussels;

3.     The Boom Battle Bar owner-operated business, which as at 28 Sept 2025 comprised 25 Boom Battle Bar sites in the UK and one in Dubai.

4.     The Boom Battle Bar franchise business, comprising 5 sites, where all franchised branches operate under the same model within the Boom Battle Bar brand; and

The Group operates on a global basis. As at 28 Sept 2025, the Company had active Escape Hunt franchisees in 7 countries. The Company does not presently analyse or measure the performance of the franchising business into geographic regions or by type of revenue, since this does not provide meaningful analysis for managing the business. 

		Escape Hunt  Owner operated	Escape Hunt  Franchise	Boom Owner operated	Boom Franchise	Unallocated	Total
Twenty six weeks ended 28 Sept 2025		£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Revenue		7,336	264	20,381	230	-	28,211
Cost of sales		(2,101)	-	(8,850)	(1)	-	(10,952)
Gross profit		5,235	264	11,531	229	-	17,259
Site level operating costs		(1,795)	-	(6,489)	1	(51)	(8,334)
Other income		149	-	(49)	-	51                     7	151
Site level EBITDA		3,589	264	4,993	230	-	9,076
Centrally incurred overheads		(1,169)	2	(1,105)	(1)	(2,821)	(5,094)
Depreciation and amortisation		(1,113)	-	(2,695)	(19)	(121)	(3,948)
Exceptional items		(9)	-	(29)	-	(7)	(45)
Operating profit / (loss)		1,298	266	1,164	210	(2,949)	(11)
Adjusted EBITDA		2,701	252	4,291	229	(2,761)	4,712
Depreciation and amortisation		(837)	-	(1,629)	(19)	(121)	(2,606)
Depreciation of right-of-use assets		(275)	-	(1,067)	-	-	(1,342)
Dilapidations provision		(36)	-	(92)	-	-	(128)
Contract termination, branch closure and other exceptional costs		(28)	-	(76)	-	(7)	(111)
Pre-opening costs		(224)	-	(263)	-	-	(487)
Provision against guarantee losses		-	-	-	-	(33)	(33)
Foreign currency gains		(3)	10	-	-	-	7
Share-based payment expenses		-	-	-	-	(23)	(23)
Operating profit		1,298	266	1,164	210	(2,949)	(11)
Interest income / (expense)		-	-	(46)	(6)	(316)	(368)
Finance lease charges		(190)	-	(1,274)	-	-	(1,464)
Profit/(loss) from operations before tax		1,108	266	(156)	204	(3,265)	(1,843)
Taxation		-	-	-	-	1	1
Profit / (loss) for the period		1,108	266	(156)	204	(3,264)	(1,842)
Other information:
Non-current assets		11,451	-	41,582	1,311	19,281	73,625

		Escape Hunt  Owner operated	Escape Hunt  Franchise	Boom Owner operated	Boom Franchise	Unallocated	Total
Six months ended 30 Sept 2024		£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Revenue		6,510	292	17,555	538	-	24,895
Cost of sales		(1,862)	-	(7,405)	-	-	(9,267)
Gross profit		4,648	292	10,150	538	-	15,628
Site level operating costs		(1,746)	-	(6,846)	-	-	(8,592)
Other income		-	-	-	-	-                     7	-
Site level EBITDA		2,902	292	3,304	538	-	7,036
Centrally incurred overheads		(1,032)	(3)	(585)	-	(2,727)	(4,346)
Depreciation and amortisation		(866)	(15)	(2,156)	(42)	(12)	(3,091)
Exceptional items		(49)	-	(299)	-	(36)	(384)
Operating profit / (loss)		955	274	264	496	(2,775)	(786)
Adjusted EBITDA		2,107	269	2,975	538	(2,715)	3,173
Depreciation and amortisation		(619)	(15)	(1,231)	(42)	(12)	(1,919)
Depreciation of right-of-use assets		(247)	-	(924)	-	-	(1,171)
Dilapidations provision		(35)	-	(73)	-	-	(108)
Contract termination and other exceptional costs		(49)	-	(299)	-	(36)	(384)
Pre-opening costs		(198)	-	(109)	-	-	(307)
Provision against guarantee losses		-	-	-	-	22	22
Provision against loan to franchisee		-	-	-	-	(12)	(12)
Loss on disposal of assets		(4)	-	(67)	-	-	(71)
Foreign currency gains		-	20	(7)	-	-	13
Share-based payment expenses		-	-	-	-	(22)	(22)
Operating profit		955	274	264	496	(2,775)	(786)
Interest income / (expense)		-	-	-		(152)	(152)
Finance lease charges		(179)	-	(1,082)	-	-	(1,261)
Profit/(loss) from operations before tax		776	274	(818)	496	(2,927)	(2,199)
Taxation		(5)	-	(11)	8	-	(8)
Profit / (loss) for the period		771	274	(829)	505	(2,928)	(2,207)
Other information:
Non-current assets		9,448	25	38,773	70	22,374	70,690

6.         Loss per share

Basic loss per share is calculated by dividing the loss attributable to equity holders by the weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue during the period. Diluted loss per share is not presented as the potential issue of ordinary shares from the exercise of options are anti-dilutive.

	26 weeks	Six months
	ended	ended
	28 Sept	30 Sept
	2024	2024
	Unaudited	Unaudited
	£	£
Loss after tax (£000)	(1,842)	(2,207)
Weighted average number of shares:
-     Basic and diluted	175,157,600	174,918,256
Loss per share (pence)
-       Basic and diluted	1.05	1.26

7.         Taxation

The tax charge is based on the expected effective tax rate for the year. The Group estimates it has tax losses of approximately £25.9m as at 28 Sept 2024 (30 Sept 2024: £20.1m) which, subject to agreement with taxation authorities, would be available to carry forward against future profits. The estimated tax value of such losses amounts to approximately £6.5m (30 Sept 2024: £5m).

8.         Property, plant and equipment                                                                                                                                            

	Leasehold property	Office equipment	Computers	Furniture and fixtures	Games	Total
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Cost
At 31 March 2025	24,102	206	838	4,816	11,004	40,966
Additions arising from purchases	870	-	51	372	1,418	2,711
Disposals	-	-	-	-	-	-
Additions arising from acquisition	-	-	-	-	-	-
Reanalysis	(6)	(24)	-	39	(9)	-
Conversion differences	(16)	(3)	(2)	(1)	-	(22)
As at 28 Sept 2025	24,950	179	887	5,226	12,413	43,655
Accumulated depreciation
At 31 March 2025	(7,818)	(139)	(506)	(1,703)	(5,622)	(15,788)
Depreciation charge	(1,192)	(21)	(101)	(402)	(768)	(2,484)
Disposals	-	-	-	-	-	-
Additions arising from acquisitions	-	-	-	-	-	-
Reanalysis	(77)	(23)	5	81	14	-
Conversion differences	(13)	(2)	2	(1)	(2)	(16)
As at 28 Sept 2025	(8,920)	(135)	(614)	(2,185)	(6,402)	(18,256)
Carrying amounts
At 31 March 2025	16,284	67	332	3,113	5,382	25,178
As at 28 Sept 2025	16,030	44	273	3,041	6,011	25,399

9.         Right-of-use assets

	As at 28 Sept 2025	As at 31 March 2025
	£'000	£'000
Land and buildings - right-of-use asset cost b/f	34,475	25,442
Closures / leases ended for renegotiation during the period	-	-
Additions during the year, including through acquisition	855	10,215
Lease incentives	(475)	(1,182)
Less: Accumulated depreciation b/f	(7,617)	(5,116)
Depreciation charged for the period	(1,341)	(2,501)
Net book value	25,897	26,858

The additions of in the period relate to new leases signed. The Group leases land and buildings for its offices and escape room venues under agreements of between five to fifteen years with, in some cases, options to extend. The leases have various escalation clauses. On renewal, the terms of the leases are renegotiated.

10.       Intangible assets

	Goodwill	Trademarks and patents	Intellectual property	Internally generated IP	Franchise agreements	App Quest	Portal	Total
	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000	£'000
Cost
At 31 March 2025	24,185	114	10,195	2,074	720	100	453	37,841
Additions	-	-	-	63	-	-	8	71
Disposals	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Additions arising from acquisition	(731)	-	-	-	-	-	-	(731)
Re-analysis	(899)	-	-	-	-	-	-	(899)
Conversion differences	-	-	-	-	-	-	(1)	(1)
As at 28 Sept 2025	22,555	114	10,195	2,137	720	100	460	36,281
Accumulated amortisation
At 31 March 2025	(1,448)	(89)	(10,195)	(1,300)	(700)	(100)	(336)	(14,168)
Amortisation	-	(4)	-	(87)	(5)	-	(24)	(120)
Disposals	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Additions arising from acquisitions	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Conversion Differences	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
At 28 Sept 2025	(1,448)	(93)	(10,195)	(1,387)	(705)	(100)	(360)	(14,288)
Carrying amounts
At 31 March 2025	22,737	25	-	774	20	-	117	23,673
At 28 Sept 2025	21,107	21	-	750	15	-	100	21,993

11.       Provisions

	As at 28 Sept 2025	As at 31 March 2025
	£'000	£'000
Dilapidations provisions	891	775
Provision for financial guarantee contracts	91	58
Other provisions	591	636
Provisions at end of period	1,573	1,469
Due within one year	73	294
Due after more than one year	1,500	1,175
	1,573	1,469
The movement on provisions in the period can be analysed as follows:

	26 weeks ended 28 Sept 2025	Six months ended 30 Sept 2024
	£'000	£'000
Balance at beginning of period	1,469	609
Movement in dilapidations provision	116	108
IFRS 9 Provision for lease guarantees	33	(22)
Movement in other provisions	(45)	185
Provisions at end of period	1,573	881

12.       Lease liabilities

	Period ended 28 Sept 2025	Six months ended 30 Sept 2024
	£'000	£'000
In respect of right-of-use assets
Balance at beginning of period	37,241	29,819
Closures / leases ended for renegotiation during the period	-	-
Additions during the period	854	5,527
Interest Incurred	1,464	1,261
Repayments during the period	(2,543)	(1,927)
Rent concessions received	-	-
Reallocated from accruals and trade payables
Lease liabilities at end of period	37,017	34,680

	As at 28 Sept 2025	As at 31 March 2025
	£'000	£'000
Maturity
< 3 months	651	669
3 - 12 months	2,013	1,749
Non-current	34,353	34,823
Total lease liabilities	37,017	37,241

13.       Borrowings

	As at	As at
	28 Sept 2025	31 March 2025
	£'000	£'000
Amounts due within one year
Vendor loans and loan notes	279	433
Fit out finance, including equipment finance leases	422	492
Bank and other borrowings	28	215
	729	1,140
Amounts due in more than one year:
Vendor loans and  loan notes	18	173
Fit out finance	177	286
Bank and other borrowings	8,887	4,388
As at end of period / year	9,082	4,847
Total at end of period / year	9,811	5,987

The Group has a £10m revolving credit facility used for funding capital expenditure and general working capital and has utilised asset backed fit-out finance to fund fit outs in certain Boom and Escape Hunt locations.  The group has uses a loan facility to spread the cost of insurance over the year.  Vendor loans comprises deferred consideration in respect of previous acquisitions of Boom franchise sites. The total fit-out finance outstanding as at 28 September 2025 was £599k; vendor loans £297k; bank and other loans totaled £8,915k.

14.       Share capital

	As at	As at
	28 Sept 2025	31 March 2025
	Unaudited
	£'000	£'000
As at beginning of period / year -     175,157,600 (Mar 2025: 174,557,600) Ordinary shares of 1.25 pence each	2,190	2,182
Issued during the period / year -     nil Ordinary shares (2024/25: 600,000)	-	8
As at end of period / year -     175,157,600 (Mar 2025: 175,157,600) Ordinary shares of 1.25 pence each	2,190	2,190

15.       Share option and incentive plans

Escape Hunt plc Enterprise Management Incentive Plan

On 15 July 2020, the Company established the Escape Hunt plc Enterprise Management Incentive Plan ("2020 EMI Plan").  The 2020 EMI Plan is an HMRC approved plan which allows for the issue of "qualifying options" for the purposes of Schedule 5 to the Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003 ("Schedule 5"), subject to the limits specified from time to time in paragraph 7 of Schedule 5, and also for the issue of non qualifying options.

It is the Board's intention to make awards under the 2020 EMI Plan to attract and retain senior employees.  The 2020 EMI Plan is available to employees whose committed time is at least 25 hours per week or 75% of his or her "working time" and who is not precluded from such participation by paragraph 28 of Schedule 5 (no material interest).   The 2020 EMI Plan will expire on the 10th anniversary of its formation.

The Company has made five awards to date as set out in the table below. The options are exerciseable at their relevant exercise prices and vest in three equal tranches on each of the first, second and third anniversary of the grants, subject to the employee not having left employment other than as a Good Leaver.  The number of options that vest are subject to a performance condition based on the Company's share price. This will be tested on each vesting date and again between the third and fourth anniversaries of awards.  If the Company's share price at testing equals the first vesting price, one third of the vested options will be exercisable. If the Company's share price at testing equals the second vesting price, 90 per cent of the vested options will be exercisable. If the Company's share price at testing equals or exceeds the third vesting price, 100% of the vested options will be exercisable. The proportion of vested options exercisable for share prices between the first and second vesting prices will scale proportionately from one third to 90 per cent.  Similarly, the proportion of options exercisable for share prices between the second and third vesting prices will scale proportionately from 90 per cent to 100 per cent.

The options will all vest in the case of a takeover.  If the takeover price is at or below the exercise price, no options will be exercisable.  If the takeover price is greater than or equal to the second vesting price, 100 per cent of the options will be exercisable.  The proportion of options exercisable between the first and second vesting prices will scale proportionately from nil to 100 per cent. 

If not exercised, the options will expire on the seventh anniversary of award.  Options exercised will be settled by the issue of ordinary shares in the Company.

Awards	#1	#2	#3	#4	#5
Date of award	15-Jul-20	18-Nov-21	23-Nov-21	15-Dec-23	01-Oct-24
Date of expiry	15-Jul-27	18-Nov-26	23-Nov-26	31-Jul-30	31-Jul-31
Exercise price	7.5p	35.0p	35.0p	15.0p	14.0p
Qualifying awards - number of shares under option	13,333,332	700,001	533,334	0	0
Non-qualifying awards - number of shares under option	2,400,000	0	0	666,666	2,359,905
Awards Lapsed	0	0	266,667	0	0
First vesting price	11.25p	43.75p	43.75p	18.75p	18.76p
Second vesting price	18.75p	61.25p	61.25p	25.00p	24.50p
Third vesting price	25.00p	70.00p	70.00p	26.25p	34.16p
Proportion of awards vesting at first vesting price	33.33%	33.33%	33.33%	33.33%	33.33%
Proportion of awards vesting at second vesting price	90.00%	90.00%	90.00%	90.00%	90.00%
Proportion of awards vesting at third vesting price	100%	100%	100%	100%	100%

As at 28 Sept 2025, 19,726,571 options were outstanding under the 2020 EMI Plan (30 Sept 2024, 17,366,666).

The sum of £15,496 has been recognised as a share-based payment and charged to the profit and loss during the period (6 months ended 30 Sept 2024: £13,022).  The fair value of the options granted during the period has been calculated using the Black & Scholes formula with the following key assumptions:

Table 2
Awards	#1	#2	#3	#4	#5
Exercise price	7.5p	35.0p	35.0p	15.0p	14.0p
Volatility	34.60%	31%	31%	35%	35%
Share price at date of award	7.375p	33.50p	32.00p	15.00p	12.50p
Option exercise date	16-Jul-24	19-Nov-26	24-Nov-26	31-Jul-29	31-Jul-30
Risk free rate	-0.05%	1.55%	1.55%	3.5%	4.13%

The performance conditions were taken into account as follows:

The value of the options have then been adjusted to take account of the performance hurdles by assuming a lognormal distribution of share price returns, based on an expected return on the date of issue.  This results in the mean expected return calculated using a lognormal distribution equaling the implied market return on the date of issue validating that the expected return relative to the volatility is proportionately correct.  This was then used to calculate an implied probability of the performance hurdles being achieved within the four year window and the Black & Scholes derived option value was adjusted accordingly.

Time based vesting: It has been assumed that there is between a 90% and 95% probability of all share option holders for each award remaining in each consecutive year thereafter.

The weighted average remaining contractual life of the options outstanding at 28 Sept 2025 is 27.9 months (30 Sept 2024: 12.9 months).

An option-holder has no voting or dividend rights in the Company before the exercise of a share option.

Escape Hunt Employee Share Incentive Scheme

In January 2021, the Company established the Escape Hunt  Share Incentive Plan ("SIP").

The SIP has been adopted to promote and support the principles of wider share ownership amongst all the Company's employees. The Plan is available to all eligible employees, including Escape Hunt 's executive directors, and invites individuals to elect to purchase ordinary shares of 1.25p each in the Company via the SIP trustee using monthly salary deductions. Shares are be purchased monthly by the SIP trustee on behalf of the participating employees at the prevailing market price.   Individual elections can be as little as £10 per month, but may not, in aggregate, exceed £1,800 per employee in any one tax year.  The Ordinary Shares acquired in this manner are referred to as "Partnership Shares" and, for each Partnership Share purchased, participants are awarded one further Ordinary Share, known as a "Matching Share", at nil cost.

Matching Shares must normally be held in the SIP for a minimum holding period of 3 years and, other than in certain exceptional circumstances, will be forfeited if, during that period, the participant in question ceases employment or withdraws their corresponding Partnership Shares from the Plan.

As at 28 September 2025, 802,054 matching shares (30 September 2024: 538,916) had been awarded and were held by the trustees for release to employees pending satisfaction of their retention conditions .  A charge of £7,610 (6 months to 30 Sept 2024: £9,243) has been recognised in the accounts in respect of the Matching Shares awards.

16.       Key management personnel compensation

	26 weeks ended	Six months ended
	28 Sept 2025	30 Sept 2024
	Unaudited	Unaudited
	£'000	£'000
Salaries and benefits (including directors)	412	421
Share-based payments	5	7
Social security costs	81	77
Other post-employment benefits	16	20
Less amounts capitalised	(46)	(26)
Total	468	501

17.       Related party transactions

During the period under review, the Directors are not aware of any significant transactions with related parties (six months ended 30 Sept 2024 nil).

18.       Subsequent Events

Since the period end, the group has reached agreement to refinance its bank facilities, securing a new 3 year, £20 million revolving credit facility with HSBC.  This replaces the previous £10m facility with Barclays which expires in October 2026.

COMPANY INFORMATION

Directors

Richard Rose, Independent Non-Executive Chairman

Richard Harpham, Chief Executive Officer

Graham Bird, Chief Financial Officer

Martin Shuker, Non-Executive Director

Philip Shepherd, Non-Executive Director

Company Secretary

Joanne Briscoe

Company number

10184316

Registered address

Boom Battle Bar Oxford Street

Ground Floor and Basement Level, 70-88 Oxford Street

London, England

W1D 1BS

Independent auditors

HW Fisher Audit (a trading name of Sumer Auditco Limited)

Acre House

11-15 William Rd

London

NW1 3ER

Nominated adviser and broker

Singer Capital Markets Advisory LLP
One Bartholomew Lane
London
EC2N 2AX

Registrars

Link Market Services Limited

29 Wellington Street

Leeds

LS1 4DL

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[1] Data from CGA / RSM Hospitality Business Tracker

 

END