Pre-tax profits at the main Irish based unit of Glen Dimplex, the electrical goods company owned by the Louth-based Naughton family, increased three fold last year to €120.93m.
New consolidated accounts filed by Glen Dimplex Europe Holdings Ltd show that the business enjoyed the boost in profits as revenues rose by 2% from €944.03m to €962.7m in the 12 months to the end of September.
The 182% increase in profits coincided with Glen Dimplex gaining €185m from completing the sale of its global brand rights of Morphy Richards home appliances brand to a Chinese acquirer, Guangdong Xinbao Electrical Appliance Holdings (Xinbao).
Morphy Richards is a British brand that was acquired by Glen Dimplex founder and industrialist Martin Naughton in the mid-80s.
The deal saw Glen Dimplex keep rights to distribute the brand for the Chinese company under licence in Ireland, Australia and New Zealand for at least 10 years.
Numbers employed across Glen Dimplex Europe Holdings last year increased by 204 to 4,595 as staff costs climbed from €248.4m to €253.9m.
Numbers employed in R&D last year increased to 346 as the group spend on R&D totalled €30.8m.
The group recorded the sharp jump in pre-tax profits chiefly from a €170.69m gain on the sale of intangible assets.
The gain was off-set by restructuring costs of €12.37m; a non-cash asset impairment of €28.7m; €10.8m donated for educational purposes; €8.5m in closure costs and ‘other’ costs of €534,000 resulting in a net gain on the group’s profit and loss account of €109.72m.
The directors said that their “strategic focus and cost discipline has enabled strong year-on-year performance, and continuing progress in delivering on our long-term ambitions”.
They said that the increase in turnover was driven by strong growth in a number of categories “and a tapering of sales in some more traditional areas of activity”.
“Both the Heating and Ventilation and Precision Cooling divisions saw good momentum, mainly focused on EU markets where sustainability remains a priority. This growth was partly offset by weak economic activity in the UK which contributed to continued softness in our UK Consumer Appliance and Flame businesses.”
The group was busy on the acquisition trail last year and that has continued into the current year.
In March 2023, the group purchased, Adax AS, a leading Norwegian supplier and manufacturer of eco-friendly electrical heating and drying appliances to household and trade in Scandinavia and Europe for €44.7m.
Post year end, the Group acquired 100% of the shares in Hyfra IndustrieKuhlanlagen GmbH, a Precision Cooling business based in Germany.
In January of this year, the Group purchased an additional 31% share capital in Werner Finley which resulted in a 51% holding. The spend on the initial 20% totalled €3.2m.
In February, the group announced a €50m investment and reorganisation of its Irish operations as it positions for growth.
During the year the group repaid €50m of debt from its revolving credit facility while dividends of €3.8 million were paid out.
Accumulated profits at the end of September totalled €402m as cash funds amounted to €271.57m.
– reporting Gordon Deegan
