Profits decline at firm behind Waterford brand

The company operates one of the most visited tourist attractions in Ireland — a combined visitor experience, retail, and manufacturing facility at House of Waterford in Waterford city — and also acts as the wholesale distributor for Fiskars Group products in Ireland. File picture

Pre-tax profits at the company behind the Waterford brand last year declined by 27% to €508,000.

New accounts filed by WWRD Ireland Ltd show that profits decreased as revenues declined by 10% from €16.56m to €14.9m.

The company operates one of the most visited tourist attractions in Ireland — a combined visitor experience, retail, and manufacturing facility at House of Waterford in Waterford city — and also acts as the wholesale distributor for Fiskars Group products in Ireland.

The directors caution that “whilst tourist numbers recovered somewhat from the pandemic and cruise passengers again descended on the House of Waterford, the wider picture remained mixed”.

The directors said that whilst Ireland is showing improving recovery from the pandemic, some lagging impacts remain.

They state that the war in Ukraine and increasing tensions in the Middle East towards the end of 2023 have slowed recovery “and meant that issues around inflation, supply chain and energy costs have only marginally improved”. They also said that the company “is not immune to any of these factors and they have driven certain strategic decisions around pricing, headcount, distribution and changes to the visitor offer at the House of Waterford".

The directors state that the company performed satisfactorily in 2023. Numbers employed decreased by one from 145 to 144 with 68 employed in distribution, sales and marketing, 75 in production and one in administration. Staff costs increased from €6.35m to €6.57m.

The company's profits declined after other operating income of €833,000 in 2022 declined to €33,000 last year and in 2022, the other operating income was made up of €454,000 in a tourism grant and €437,000 in a covid-19 employment wage subsidy scheme.

At the end of 2023, the company had accumulated profits of €4.97m.

The company is a subsidiary of Finland-based group, Fiskars Oyj Abp. Fiskars is a leading worldwide provider of luxury homes, outdoor living and lifestyle products Some of the other brands owned by the Fiskars Group include Wedgwood, Royal Doulton and Royal Albert.

The Waterford-based business had previously been controlled by Sir Anthony O’Reilly and his brother-in-law Peter Goulandris.

Waterford Crystal was first established in 1783 on land adjacent to Merchants' Quay in Waterford, just minutes from the present-day House of Waterford.

At the House of Waterford, visitors on the guided tour can witness how Waterford pieces are crafted, from initial design right up to the final engraving.

At the site, the company's 12,000 sq ft retail space houses the largest collection of Waterford Crystal in the world.