MBL Group up for sale

MBL Group, the AIM-listed entertainment and gardening products supplier based in Preston, has started a formal sale process after posting a loss of £158,000 for the year.

The group, which saw turnover increase 8% to £15.9m for the year to the end of March 2017, made the post tax loss because of exceptional costs of almost £700,000, which it said were a result of its strategic review.

It said that both its Home Entertainment and Garden & Home trading divisions were profitable, with the Garden & Home division – which specialises in the mail order and online sales of garden bird food and associated wildlife products and aquatics supplies – seeing a 1,600% increase in operating profit.

In Home entertainment, sales were stimulated by the continued growth of the vinyl market and back catalogue sales in the audio market driven by the death of high profile artists which revived interest in their music.

Tim Jackson-Smith, chairman of MBL, said: The financial year ending 31 March 2017 saw the goup undergoing many changes including the completion of a strategic review and the commencement of a formal sales process.

“However, despite the many challenges and distractions that these changes presented I am pleased to say that both trading divisions performed well and were each profitable and cash generative.

“There were a number of one-off exceptional costs that the group incurred in connection with the above changes that resulted in a loss at group level. On behalf of the board, I would like to thank everyone across the group for their hard work and dedication.”

The group has net cash of £1.6m remains debt free. It will not pay a dividend this year.