Meadows & Byrne operator Blarney Woollen Mills Group increases revenues to €50.2m

Revenues increased last year driven by the group’s key retail and hospitality markets being open for the full year following pandemic shutdowns. Picture: Denis Minihane

Revenues at Cork's Blarney Woollen Mills Group last year increased by 40% to €50.2m as the retail and hotel business recovered from the covid-19 business impact.

The group operates the Meadows & Byrne and Blarney Woollen Mills retail networks around the country and new accounts show that pre-tax profits declined by 60% to €4.35m in the 12 months to the end of January 31 last.

The chief factor behind the drop in profits was no covid-19 Employer Wage Subsidy Scheme payments last year compared to €4.59m received in the prior year.

The group also operates the Bunratty Castle Hotel and the new accounts show that the group has now received insurance proceeds of €2.5m from a fire that damaged the hotel in 2021.

Arising from the insurance claim from the June 2021 fire, the group received insurance proceeds of €521,550 last year and this is in addition to the €1.98m received in the prior year.

The €2.5m insurance proceeds for the Bunratty hotel fire is offset by associated costs of €230,581 resulting in a net gain of insurance proceeds of €2.27m.

A note attached states that the gain is the excess of the insurance proceeds received over the net book value of the relevant assets at that date and the direct costs incurred, plus amounts received to cover business interruption.

Along with operating Blarney Woollen Mills and Meadows & Byrne shops around the country, the group operates hotels and restaurants situated in Blarney, Cork, Dove Hill, Co. Tipperary and Bunratty, Co. Clare.

The directors say that revenues increased last year driven by the group’s key retail and hospitality markets being open for the full year following covid-19 shutdowns and the continued successful execution of the company’s growth strategy.

They state: 

Demand for the company’s products remains strong, however, the cost of doing business has continued to increase.

The group recorded operating profits of €4.8m and interest costs of €451,773 reduced profits to €4.35m. The profit takes account of non-cash depreciation costs of €331,690.

The group recorded post-tax profits of €3.57m after incurring a corporation tax charge of €780,703.

The accounts — signed off by directors, Freda Hayes and Fergus Gately on November 7 — show that retail sales grew by 25% rising from €26.56m to €33.17m while hotel and restaurant sales more than doubled from €6.4m to €14.1m.

The group’s revenues from manufacturing knitwear increased marginally from €2.62m to €2.78m while concession income totalled €198,144.

Numbers employed by the group increased by 91 from 409 to 500 as staff costs increased to €13.56m.

Directors' pay increased from €697,103 to €873,798, made up of €620,000 in remuneration and €253,798 in pension contributions. Key management personnel shared pay of €1.38m.

Shareholder funds at the end of January totalled €28.94m. Cash funds declined from €18.55m to €13.67m.