Yorkshire Tea maker brews up record turnover
Betty’s and Taylors Group, owners of Betty’s Cafe Tea Rooms and makers of Yorkshire Tea, saw turnover rise by 14% to £296m in the full year to 31 October 2023.
In accounts posted to Companies House on Sunday, the firm said the volume of products sold grew by 11%, underpinned by growth in sales of Yorkshire Tea, which now has a UK black tea market share of 36.2% – its highest to date.
The firm’s operating profit increased to £12.4m from £10.2m, and cash reserves increased to £16.9m from £12m. The report said the firm had mitigated rising costs by focussing on efficiency and operational effectiveness. Production costs for tea and coffee fell by 8% per kilo in tandem with a 6% increase in production volume.
The sale of the former Betty’s in Leeds generated £2m. The firm invested £5.4m in plant machinery and IT systems as it entered the final phase of its multi-year enterprise resource planning project.
It also spent £3.1m for the first year of a three-year agreement to acquire the shares of one of its shareholders.
The directors’ report noted, “As a family business we have passed the values of our Swiss-Yorkshire heritage down through the generations and we are guided by our family shareholders’ vision for the business: working together to build a great Yorkshire family business, inspired by our Swiss heritage, creating prosperity and pride by doing what we believe in.”
Group finance and resources director Paul Cogan said: “We have much to be grateful for as our family business has continued to thrive despite the challenging conditions. When we started the
year, we expected trading to be particularly tough, and we prepared ourselves to weather the storm of high inflation, unfavourable exchange rates, and a cost-of-living crisis. It’s been a year when the creativity and agility of our people, the strength of our brands, and the loyalty of our customers have helped us deliver impressive results.”
He added, “As a family business that’s over a hundred years old, we continue to adapt, evolve and strengthen our businesses in the face of increasing uncertainty and challenge in the world. But we hope that by continuing to put our stakeholders and our values at the heart of how we operate, we will continue to earn the loyalty of customers who see good value in our good values.”
