Smyths Toys records £666.5m revenues in UK and Northern Ireland

Combined revenues at the British and Northern Ireland units of Galway-headquartered retail toy giant Smyths Toys last year totalled £666.56 million (€780.35 million).

According to new accounts filed by Smyths Toys UK Ltd and Smyth’s Toys NI Ltd, combined revenues decreased only marginally, by £1.3 million from £667.874 million to £666.56 million, despite the Covid-19 shutdown on its bricks-and-mortar store network during part of 2020.

The accounts for Smyths Toys UK Ltd show the company’s pre-tax profits last year decreased by 24 per cent from £12.48 million to £9.5 million. This followed revenues decreasing from £622.8 million to £620 million.

The directors state the company’s store network had to close again this year from January to April due to Covid-19 but that since reopening, all stores “are performing strongly”.

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The directors said they were “pleased” with the 2020 performance, “particularly given the current economic climate, the competitive marketplace and the outbreak of Covid-19”.

The UK company last year paid out a dividend of £31 million.

Numbers employed at the firm last year increased by 92 from 2,809 to 2,901 and staff costs reduced from £44.8 million to £42.66 million.

Expansion of operations

Smyths Toys operates 106 stores across Britain, seven in Northern Ireland, and 21 in the Republic of Ireland, along with a number of stores across Europe. The directors say “it is envisaged that further expansion will occur in the UK market in the coming years”.

Pre-tax profits at the Northern Ireland unit reduced by 22 per cent to £703,000 as revenues increased by 3 per cent from £45.19 million to £46.47 million.

The profits for the UK operation take account of non-cash depreciation costs of £12.66 million.

The company’s lease costs reduced from £30.3 million to £27.9 million. The firm last year recorded post-tax profits of £7.07 million after paying corporation tax of £2.43 million. Shareholder funds at the end of December last totalled £20.28 million.