Gate Gourmet Ireland serves up 57% rise in profits

By Gordon Deegan

Record numbers of passengers going through Dublin Airport last year helped boost pre-tax profits at catering firm Gate Gourmet by 57% to over €1.38m.

Last year, 29.6m passengers went through Dublin Airport, helping revenues at Gate Gourmet Ireland Ltd to increase by 12% to €20.59m.

The company “performed strongly”, driven by increased volumes and new customers, state its directors in the accounts.

Its parent group, the Swiss-based Gategroup, is owned by the indebted Chinese conglomerate HNA.

Plans to spin off Gategroup in a stock-market sale were abandoned this year.

Singapore fund Temasek swooped earlier this summer to buy a stake in the Swiss-based airline caterer.

In Ireland, it is engaged principally as Gate Gourmet in food manufacture and in-flight catering facilities.

The figures show that operating profits at Gate Gourmet Ireland increased 60% to €1.273m.

Accumulated profits rose from €1.8m to €3m, while shareholder funds increased from €6.3m to €7.5m.

Staff numbers increased in the year to 115 from 105.

Its costs of sales increased from €11.37m to €11.62m, with administrative expenses climbing from €6.24m to €7.69m.

After paying corporation taxes of €186,920, it posted a net profit of almost €1.22m.

Gategroup serves more than 350m passengers a year from about 100 airport locations operated by Gate Gourmet

around the globe

.