£150m card manufacturer back in the black

Hallmark, the card manufacturer, has reported that it is back  in the black with turnover rising to £150m, despite selling its whole retail portfolio during the year.

This was an increase for the year to December 2016 from £139m the year before.

Hallmark also reported that it was back in the black after a period of loss. It made £3.5m last year, compared to a loss of £2.4m in 2015 after spending just under £3.6m on restructuring.

Card maker Hallmark, based at its Bradford HQ, said the turnover increase represented some major customer wins, as it focuses on supply into the retail sector.

It sold all its stores during the year, and in a major move is closing its Bingley Road site in Bradford to consolidate activities at Dawson Lane in the city, with major renovations there expected to be complete this year. Hallmark will move 250 staff into the refurbished site. The site currently houses 180 distribution staff.

The only bad news, it said, was that Brexit’s effect on the pound would have a detrimental effect to its profitability in the coming year. £149m of its revenues come from the UK and the Republic of Ireland. It is a subsidiary of Hallmark Cards Inc, based in  Missouri in the US, of Which Donald J Hall is chief executive (pictured above).

Staff numbers reached 1,287 for the year. No dividend was recommended.

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