Vintage year as Boutinot’s profits fizz
BOUTINOT, the privately-owned Manchester-based wine importer and producer, saw profits more than double to £3.8m as sales rose to £75.3m.
Newly-filed accounts for the Gatley-based company, founded in 1980 by chairman Paul Boutinot, show that sales grew in all locations and the group continuing to invest in its vineyards in France and South Africa.
Boutinot, which supplies many of the major supermarket groups including Tesco, Sainsbury’s and M&S as well as independent wine merchants, makes the lion’s share of its sales in the UK.
During the year UK sales grew from £60.1m to £63.9m, revenue from EC member states also grew, from £12.1m to £14.2m, while sales to new markets including India and China nearly doubled from £900,000 to £1.5m.
In their review of the year the directors said: “Notwithstanding the continuing difficult economic climate the company has generated a robust performance to date in the current financial yerar and the directors remain confident in its ability to make further progress.”
A dividend of £926,000 was paid during the year, the accounts show, while a further vineyard was acquired in the South Rhone region of France to complement its existing operations in the region.
Boutinot has businesses in France, the US and South African and a joint venture in Italy. It employs 86 people, of whom around 30 are based in Gatley.
Oriiginally set up by Paul Boutinot to source wines for his parents’ restaurant in Heald Green near Stockport, the company now has a portfolio of more than 800 wines.
