Paramount's recipe for Chez Gerard

PARAMOUNT, the cash shell which took over the Chez Gerard restaurant group last April, enjoyed a strong pick-up in Christmas trade.

Like-for-like sales in the six weeks to 4 January increased 5.7% at the group, which owns the Bertorelli's, Livebait and Cafe Fish restaurants as well as the flagship Chez Gerard.

'We're well on the way to stabilising and turning around a business that was in decline,' said chief executive Nick Basing, although sales growth for the past six months was a more pedestrian 1.4%. Like-for-like sales last Christmas fell by 2%.

The Paramount performance also compares well with three pizza chains, which last week reported like-for-like growth in the 3%-4.5% range.

Shares in Paramount rose 1 1/2p to 31p, giving fresh paper profits to chairman Guy Naggar, the French banker, who has been aggressively piling up shares in recent months.

Parmount is refurbishing the Floral Street Bertorelli's in Covent Garden and sees scope for further expansion of the brand, which also has branches in Soho and just north of there, in Charlotte Street.