Ballymaloe hotel’s accumulated profits increase to €2.24m

Gordon Deegan

Accumulated profits at the firm behind the renowned Ballymaloe House Hotel last year increased marginally to €2.24m.

Yeats Room Ltd operates the venue — new accounts show the company recorded modest profits of €3,262 last year, following profits of €71,478 in 2016 and €24,238 in 2015.

Numbers employed at the Cork hotel and restaurant last year increased from 48 to 51, with staff costs amounting to €1.7m.

Pay to directors was reduced from €425,759 to €408,920.

In the 12 months to the end of October last, the company’s cash reserves increased marginally, rising from €761,476 to €769,865.

The downturn in profits at the company last year was the result of the business investing in the house as it upgraded bathrooms and bedrooms.

Irish business at Ballymaloe accounts for 65% of revenues with overseas visitors accounting for the rest.

Ballymaloe House can accommodate 60 guests for bed and breakfast and 120 in the restaurant.

The company has turned the Grainstore on the farm into a venue where it can cater for corporate events up to 250. The Grainstore can also cater for a small number of weddings.

Last year, the aggregate pay to directors decreased from €574,181 to €549,986.

The pay to key management personnel increased from €114,039 to €122,295. The value of the firm’s tangible assets last year stood at €1.96m.

The late Myrtle Allen started the business with her late husband, Ivan, in 1964 which subsequently spawned the cookery school. The second and third generation of Allens have created 16 separate business enterprises.

Accounts recently filed by Ballymaloe Cookery School Ltd show that it recorded an operational profit before depreciation and tax of €54,292 in 2017.

At the end of last August, the company was sitting on accumulated profits of some €2.63m.

The school has been operating since 1983 and the main driver of its success is its 12-week cookery course, which costs participants €12,495.

The course runs three times every year and if the 60 place course is fully subscribed, it can generate revenues of €2.2m for the school per annum.

Along with the intensive course, the cookery school offers a range of other courses.

Underlining the increased activity at the cookery school last year, numbers employed increased from 53 to 60 while staff costs increased from €1.5m to €1.9m.