Consumer goods manufacturer Creightons has seen trade remain strong despite supply chain problems and a considerable decline in purchases of hygiene-based products.
The Peterborough-based company saw overall net sales drop by just under £2.4million year-on-year to £30million in the six months ending 30 September, while profits as a percentage of revenues were cut to 6.6 per cent.
Sales of hygiene goods plunged by around £11.5million from the same period last year when the pandemic sent demand for staples like hand sanitiser soaring, and the group benefited from the NHS PPE procurement plan.
The Peterborough-based beauty products seller saw overall net sales drop by just under £2.4million year-on-year to £30million in the six months ending September 30
Though hygiene brands took a knock, a 40 per cent jump in core sales helped ensure the firm’s total revenues still surpassed their pre-pandemic levels.
Creightons credited a robust performance by its Feather & Down and Balance Active brands for its non-hygiene and newly-acquired brand purchases, revenues from which climbed by 47 per cent to just over £8million.
In addition, it attributed the reopening of high street shops and a significant new contract with a ‘key grocer’ for its private-label sales increasing by £2.3million to £13.1million.
The results come against a backdrop of difficulties within Creightons’ supply chain, such as longer delivery times from suppliers, and rising input and overhead costs.
However this failed to stop production at its Peterborough and Tiverton facilities.
It expects problems deriving from its supply chain to remain into the second half of the year but insisted it would ‘continue to be proactive in our response to these challenges’.
‘In particular, we will seek out new opportunities and endeavour to mitigate any price increases through price recovery, product reengineering, alternative sourcing and other cost control measures.’
Creightons hopes its recent purchases of cruelty-free skincare brand Emma Hardie for £6.4million and personal care company Brodie & Stone for £4.8million at the end of September will provide a further uplift to trade.
The latter group markets brands such as T Zone, Natural World and Janina, and used to own the skincare label Balance Active Formula until Creightons bought it in June 2019.
Shares in Creightons were up 5.4 per cent to 92.5p during the late morning on Thursday.
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