Profits bounce back at Regatta
RISOL Imports, parent company of outdoor clothing business Regatta, saw earnings bounce back last year.
Newly-filed accounts from the Manchester company, owned and run by brother and sister Keith and Joanne Black, show pre-tax profits rose by 43% to £7.7m in the year to the end of Jaunary. Revenues were up 1.4% to £121.6m.
In 2011-12 profits were knocked by a mild winter which left the group with too much stock.
In their report the directors said they had managed to reduce the levels of stock by 37% despite “continuing tough trading conditions”.
An Asian sourcing office has “come into its own” and the company progressed its plan to move all warehousing to one site in Ellesmere Port. It also hopes to conclude a three-year refinancing ahead of a September deadline.
Regatta, which won a prestigious Queen’s Award for export last year, sells goods in more than 40 countries. The company has sales offices in France, Belgium, Ireland, Germany, Holland, Spain, Poland, Italy, Finland, Czech Republic and Israel. It said investment in new markets continued.
The directors added: “Whilst the nature of the weather in the key winter months will, as ever, be an important factor affecting the results for the coming year, the board is confident that the business is well positioned to deliver increased profitability.”
At the year end the group employed more than 503, down from 534 last time. No dividend payments have been proposed.
