Profits at Domino’s Pizza’s rose nearly 33 per cent in the first six months of its financial year as cost-conscious diners shunned restaurants for a cheaper night in.

Domino’s pre-tax profits by 32.7 per cent to £10.9 million for the six months to June 29, and like-for-like sales, which strip out revenue from new shops opened in the period, rose by 11.4 per cent. Total sales rose 20 per cent to £66.2 million.

Revenue from online sales continued to rise substantially to £25.3 million, up 85 per cent on a year ago. Online orders represented 21.8 per cent of all delivered pizza sales.

Stephen Hemsley, chairman at Domino’s Pizza’s, said the results were achieved in a “significantly tougher trading environment”.

He said: “The trend that we are witnessing so far is that many consumers are 'trading down', which in our industry means that they are eating out less often and staying at home.”

The company said that sales were increasing in affluent areas as richer customers ordered in, instead of visiting local restaurants.

The delivery group, which operates a network of franchised stores, opened 25 sites in the past half year.

Mr Hemsley said new stores were trading strongly on opening and the company was well placed to exceed market expectations for the year

Domino’s said pressure from “dramatic increases in food costs” remained, despite prices rises being passed on to customers at the end of last year.

The company warned “modest” price rises were likely next year when current fixed contracts for basics such as flour and cheese came to an end.

At the end of June, Domino’s traded from 526 stores in the UK, including 416 in England. Domino’s has plans to increase its estate to 1,000 by 2017.

The company holds the master franchise to own, operate and franchise Domino’s Pizza stores in the UK and Ireland. Its first UK store opened in 1985 and the first Irish branch opened in 1991. Most of its outlets are owned by franchisees.

The company, which moved from AIM to the main market of the London Stock Exchange in May this year, is paying an interim dividend of 2.7p, up 42 per cent.

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