Growth in key markets boost manufacturer

Portmeirion Group, which sells pottery brands including Royal Worcester, has posted a rise in 2019 group revenue, boosted by growth in key markets including UK, USA and South Korea.

The Stoke-on-Trent company said group revenue increased by 3.6% to £92.8 million (2018: £89.6 million) but that the actions taken to protect its brands in the South Korean market resulted in a reduction in like-for-like sales and profit in 2019, with headline profit before tax of £7.4 million (2018: £9.7 million) and like-for-like revenue falling by 5.1% to £85.0 million (2018: £89.6 million).

Mike Raybould, chief executive, said: “We are pleased that many parts of our business continued to perform strongly in 2019.

“We have a strong balance sheet and good headroom in our bank facilities which will support our business as we navigate the fast evolving Covid-19 situation, and we have already made several steps to preserve our short term cash flow including deferring our final dividend decision until we have more certainty on the impact on the group. We are confident in the long term that by investing in our unique portfolio of brands and new product pipeline that we will continue to grow our business around the world. We are excited by the opportunities that online, new sales markets and the recent acquisition of Nambé present.”