Crawshaw and Pendragon cautious while CPS celebrates

SHAREHOLDERS at Crawshaw’s annual general meeting (AGM) were told today that high input prices and promotional activites in new stores were continuing to affect margins.

Richard Rose, chairman of the Rotherham-based meat retailer, said that the board would continue to keep the situation under review. Promotional activity has now stopped.

Its 20th store, which was opened earlier this month, however is trading in line with expectations.

At the beginning of June, Crawshaw announced that it was raising around £900,000 to supprt its butchers stores rollout strategy.

Crawshaw Butchers has retail outlets and two distribution centres across Yorkshire and the Humber, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire.

Meanwhile, Clyde Process Solutions (CPS), the Doncaster-based pneumatic conveying firm, announced that all resolutions had been passed at its AGM.

Alex Stewart, the firm’s chief executive, said that the group’s strategic diversity across key customer markets, geographical territories and technologies had generated a sales pipeline of prospects, which it aimed to convert during the forthcoming year.

“These strategies are being complemented by focusing on customer
contact, controlling costs, credit control procedures and managing cash. I
would like to thank all of our shareholders for their continued support during
this period,” he added.

CPS has already had a strong year to date and in May announced that pre-tax had increased 62% to £5.5m for the year ended February 28, compared to £3.4m last time.

Earnings before interest, tax and depreciation before exceptional items was up 10% to £7.1m on revenue up a third to £82m.

Finally, Pendragon told its shareholders that the business was seeing a “gradual return” to more normal markets for used car sales.

The car dealership giant, of which CD Brammal is a part, has been forced to cut jobs as the credit crunch hit sales.

However, at its AGM Pendragon said that new vehicle sales were in line with expectations for the first five months of the year. Its after sales business has also continued to perform satisfactorily.

“We have ensured that our cost base is kept in line with activity levels in order to deliver planned cost savings this year,” it added.

“We anticipate that the UK market will remain challenging for the remainder of the year and our expectations relating to the overall performance of the Group remain unchanged.”