Fishy Fishy lands profit of €80,000
Accounts show Shanahan’s Kinsale Gourmet Store Ltd increased accumulated profits by €150,503, from €814,770 to €965,273.
Mr Shanahan, who co-hosts RTÉ’s Surf and Turf TV show with Paul Flynn of the Tannery restaurant, Dungarvan, Co Waterford, said he is happy with how the business performed last year and in 2012.
Mr Shanahan said: “Last year, we had more customers than in 2010, but the average spend per customer was down and they weren’t going for the gin and tonic before dinner or an Irish coffee after their meal, so that affected the spend.”
Mr Shanahan, who runs the business with his wife, Marie, said that 80,000 customers came to Fishy Fishy last year against 73,000 in 2010.
The food writer said that 2012 will be on a par with last year: “Month by month to the end of September, this year has been on a par with last year, but October has seen a dip. I would like to see more people come out and enjoy themselves.”
He said that the wage bill for the business last year was just short of €1m and that, in peak season, 50 people are employed at the business, reducing to 26 in winter.
Shanahan opened Fishy Fishy in 2006 and today it has capacity for 140 customers, with seating for 90 inside and 50 outside.
He said that he has no plans to extend the Fishy Fishy brand elsewhere in Ireland.
“Restaurants and hotels are struggling in rural areas and we don’t have the volumes you do get at city restaurants and during the four or five months over the winter, we are trying to break even,” he said.
The chef, who has fronted a number of food shows, is to have a regular slot on RTÉ’s daytime show, Today, which starts on Nov 5.
He said his TV profile has definitely helped business. “The TV work has made sure we have consolidated our business here,” he said.
The accounts to the end of Dec 31 show the firm’s cash fell from €624,539 to €453,720.
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