Stoke-on-Trent pottery company reports 9th year of growth
A Stoke-on-Trent pottery company has reported its ninth consecutive year of record revenue and profit before taxation.
Portmeirion Group increased its profit before tax by 13% to £8.8m in 2017. Revenue also increased 10.% to £84.8m in 2017.
Dick Steele, the Group’s non-executive chairman said: “Our core values of innovation, targeted product development and operational excellence remain unchanged. Trading in the first two months of the current year is ahead of the comparative period in 2017. The outlook for 2018 is positive and we remain confident for the future.”
This follows the company’s integration of Wax Lyrical, a home fragrance company, into the Portmeirion Group alongside four other major brands: Portmeirion, Spode, Royal Worcester and Pimpernel.
The group’s international exports grew by 54.4% over 2016, and over 2017 it saw further growth in its core UK and US markets, as well as Hong Kong and Taiwan, but a decrease in South Korea of 32%, where, the Group reports, it is “going through a period of rebuilding”.
Steele added that, despite a promising start to the year, keeping up the record-breaking streak has its challenges.
“Trading in the first two months of the current year is nearly 20% ahead of the comparative period in 2017. However, given the Group’s second half weighting, the sales in these first two months of the year are low in comparison to the balance of the year,” he said.
