Pretax profit at Smyths Toys stores in Northern Ireland rose last year as turnover increased almost 3 per cent to £57.6 million (€68.8 million) amid an increase in footfall to its stores, as the business paid out a €1 million dividend.
Accounts filed by Smyths Toys NI Ltd, the company managing toy sales for seven retail outlets in Northern Ireland, show it made a profit before tax of £1.44 million, up 28 per cent.
A dividend of £1 million was declared and settled on an intercompany basis during the year. This compares to a dividend of £2 million in 2022, while in 2021 no dividend was paid.
The cost of sales rose 3.4 per cent during the year, but the £1.5 million increase in turnover helped its gross profit of about £8.6 million stay close to the figure of almost £8.7 million recorded the year before. Operating profit of about £1.2 million edged up from £1.1 million in 2022.
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In a note accompanying the accounts, company directors and brothers Anthony Smyth, Patrick Smyth and Thomas Smyth said that they were “pleased” with the outcome in light of the prevailing economic climate and competitive marketplace.
The company, which employed an average of 210 people throughout 2023, said it “continues to manage its cost base very closely and maximise efficiencies”.
It had net assets of £2.3 million as of the end of 2023, up from £2.2 million a year earlier.
The Smyths Toys group, first established in the late 1980s as an offshoot of the Smyth family’s newsagents and toy shop in Claremorris in Mayo, now operates across Ireland, Britain, France, the Netherlands, Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Its headquarters are in Galway.
Another brother involved in the business, Liam Smyth, died in July 2023.
Separate accounts recently filed for Smyths Toys UK Ltd show that revenue at its 120 stores across England, Scotland and Wales increased 3 per cent to a record £938.7 million last year, with operating profit rising 4 per cent to £20.3 million.
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