Profits up 9% to €2.4m for Lifestyle Sports owner

Pre-tax profits at the retail group that operates Lifestyle Sports last year increased by 9% to €2.37m.

New accounts just filed by Stafford Holdings Ltd and subsidiaries show that the group recorded the increase in pre-tax profits in spite of revenues decreasing by 3% from €359.7m to €346.8m in the 12 months to the end of September last.

According to an accompanying statement from chairman, Victor Stafford “the performance of Lifestyle Sports, in particular, was very satisfactory and this business is now the largest contributor to both profit before tax and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA)”.

Mr Stafford added: “The group’s financial performance in the year, ending September 30, 2015, is satisfactory after the first two quarters and it is expected that growth will be achieved in both profit before tax and EBITDA for the full year versus the prior year.”

The profit last year takes account of rationalisation costs of €462,000.

The family-owned Wexford-based firm purchased Lifestyle Sports for €60m in 2005.

Mr Stafford said: “Each business, Lifestyle Sports, Campus Oil and Stafford Fuels, continues to face challenges posed by the macroeconomic factors as well as factors specific to the business sector in which they operate and notably in the case of Campus Oil and Stafford Fuels which were impacted in FY14 by unseasonably mild weather in the Winter of 2013/14.”

The report states that EBITDA amounted to €8.189m.

That was a €297,000 or 3.8% increase on the earnings of €7.892m.

The directors’ report states that “all three trading businesses contributed in a material way to the group’s EBITDA generated during the year”.

The group’s net debt position reduced by 20%, or €2.96m, from €14.66m to €11.7m during the year.

The directors state that the group is appropriately structured and capitalised in order to continue to make progress towards generating satisfactory returns for its shareholders in the light of the continued recovery in profitability and EBITDA, the banking facilities in place and the continuing tight cost control.