Historic manufacturer Churchill China has “exceeded expectations” in another year of growth for the pottery company.<\/p>\n
Churchill China, which dates back to the 18th century, increased its pre-tax profits before exceptional items by 26%, to \u00a39.4m.<\/p>\n
Revenues grew more steadily at the Stoke-on-Trent group, up 7% in 2018 to \u00a357.5m.<\/p>\n
Churchill China’s chairman Alan McWalter described 2018 as “a very successful year” but also took a longer view in reviewing the company’s progress.<\/p>\n
He said: “We believe that simply focussing on a single year’s performance does not fully reflect the strength of our business or the transformation achieved in our operations over the longer term.<\/p>\n
“Our business has developed substantially over the last five years from 2013 in line with our business strategy.”<\/p>\n
Its share price reached an all-time high in January and last night’s close of 1325p is 45% higher than a year ago. Its shares have been edging upwards for most of the past decade, rising more quickly over the last five years.<\/p>\n
In that time sales to hospitality customers have increased at a compound annual rate of almost 10%, with group exports increasing from 39% to 60%.<\/p>\n
McWalter added: “The trading environment in the UK, alongside that of many businesses, is subject to increased uncertainty, but we believe we have a robust business model.<\/p>\n
“Our plans will evolve, but we will continue to emphasise growth in export markets where there is a significant opportunity to improve our market share.”<\/p>\n
It increased its final dividend by 18% to 20.3p.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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