Vimto owner Nichols saw profits jump 16% last year as it pursued a strategic shift across Africa to sell more concentrate.
The concentrate model is lower revenue but higher margin, said Nichols, and meant revenue grew by a more modest 1.2% to £172.8m in the year to 31 December. Pre-tax profits were up 15.6% to £31.4m.
Its international business also benefitted from volume growth in core markets across the Middle East during Ramadan, and a strategic expansion into Malaysia in the final months of the year.
In the UK, its packaged division grew 6.3% to hit its highest-ever Vimto retail sales of £121.2m driven by new product innovation, increased marketing investment and distribution gains.
Out of home fell, however, by 8.2% following a strategic exit from unprofitable accounts. This delivered “significant improvement in profitability”, the company said.
CEO Andrew Milne said it was “another strong performance in 2024, delivering double-digit PBT growth and improved gross margin as we continued to successfully execute our growth strategy across each of our routes to market”.
“We operate in a resilient and growing category and are well positioned to capitalise on the significant opportunities across both our UK and international markets, leveraging the strength of the Vimto brand.”
Nichols said it anticipates a further strengthening of performance this year with positive trading so far in line with expectations.
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