Pentland posts over 10 % growth

By

Olivier Guyot

Published
Jun 24, 2014

Pentland achieved excellent growth in 2013. The British company, which owns brands such as Ellesse, Kagaroos, Speedo and Boxfresh footwear and is the global licensee for Lacoste and Ted Baker, recorded a turnover of 2.377 billion euros (1.9 billion pounds) in 2013 - an increase of over 10% compared to the previous year. Its organic growth, meanwhile, was 8%.

The company highlights the performance of its brand portfolio, which recorded an 11% increase compared to 2012 at 738 million euros. Pentland also emphasized the strong performances of Speedo, Lacoste and Ted Baker, which achieved record turnovers last year. The group explains that Lacoste has performed well in Russia, China, Brazil and Turkey and that Speedo has made excellent progress in China and Britain. Meanwhile, Berghaus has been launched in the United States. The company is already making plans for Canterbury for 2015. The rugby brand will be the official kit partner for England, Ireland, Russia, Spain, the United States as well as the next World Cup’s host country, Japan.

As for the company’s retail business, which includes JD Sports Fashion (majority-owned by Pentland) - it displayed an improvement of 9% to 1.626 billion euros, mainly fueled by the strong performances of JD Sports and Size?. The company believes that the reorganization of outdoor retailers Millets and Blacks should pay off in 2014.

The group saw its operating profit exceed 39% in 2013 to reach 155 million euros. Its profits before tax reached 106 million euros, up 36%.