Blarney Woollen Mills Group reports post-pandemic jump in turnover

Blarney Woollen Mills Group saw turnover jump by more than 40 per cent to €50.28 million in its latest financial year, as its retail and hospitality businesses drove a post-pandemic boost.

However, the group’s after-tax profits more than halved to €3.58 million, as directors noted increasing costs of doing business and a drop-off in other operating income.

The Blarney Woollen Mills Group sells clothes and homewares in its Blarney Woollen Mills and Meadows & Byrne stores in Ireland, as well as operating the Blarney Woollen Mills Hotel and Mill Restaurant in Co Cork, the Dove Hill Design Centre in Co Tipperary, and Bunratty Castle Hotel in Co Clare.

The group also has a manufacturing plant in Ireland and designs and produces a range of fashion garments and accessories.

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Financial accounts for the financial year to January 31st, 2023 show that Blarney Woollen Mills Group’s annual turnover of €50.28 million was made up of €33.17 million in retail sales, €14.12 million in hotel and restaurant sales, €2.79 million from manufacturing knitwear, and €198,144 from concession income.

A directors’ report accompanying the accounts noted that increased turnover was “driven by the group’s key retail and hospitality markets being open for the full year following Covid-19 shutdowns in the year to January 2022, and the continued successful execution of the company’s growth strategy”.

While gross profit for the group rose to €29.81 million, from €21.38 million a year previously, its operating expenses also increased from €19.03 million to €25.7 million.

The report noted that while demand for the company’s products “remains strong”, “the cost of doing business has continued to increase”.

Group profit for the financial year, after tax, interest payable and similar charges, was €3.58 million, down from €7.47 million in 2022.

The accounts noted that profits were also impacted by the removal of the temporary wage subsidy scheme, and a decrease in proceeds from an insurance claim relating to a fire at the Bunratty Castle Hotel in 2021.

Separate accounts filed by Blarney Woollen Mills Limited, the group subsidiary which operates the retail and hospitality business under the Blarney Woollen Mills name, reported revenues of €20.93 million in the year to January 31st, 2023, up from €13.87 million in 2022.

After tax, the company incurred a loss of €239,942, down from a profit of €1.9 million a year previously.

The directors’ report noted that increased turnover was “driven by the company’s key retail markets performing strongly”, but that “the sourcing and pricing of key inputs remains challenging”.

The Blarney Woollen Mills Group employed an average of 500 people in 2023, up from 409 in 2022. The group’s total wage and salaries bill more than doubled to €11.95 million in 2023, up from €4.92 million in 2022.

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