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Pledge to keep investing as Pringle losses fall
Pringle of Scotland, the knitwear favoured by celebrities such as Scarlett Johansson, Madonna and Tilda Swinton, has narrowed its annual losses despite suffering a 30% slide in sales. The company’s owners also admitted they do not expect it to deliver a profit in the near future but pledged to keep investing in the business. Parent group Pringle Enterprises ploughed £6 million into the company during the past financial year, which ended on 26 January, and has injected a further £4.3m since then.
8th November 2013
Knitting Industry
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Scotland
The company’s owners also admitted they do not expect it to deliver a profit in the near future but pledged to keep investing in the business.
Parent group Pringle Enterprises ploughed £6 million into the company during the past financial year, which ended on 26 January, and has injected a further £4.3m since then.
Decline in profit
Latest figures filed with Companies House show Pringle of Scotland’s annual turnover fell to £5.9m, from £8.5m the previous year.
Gross margins also came under pressure because of changes in the mix of sales, but a sharp reduction in running costs helped pre-tax losses narrow to £6.4m, down from £9.6m a year earlier.
Satisfying prospects
Chairman Douglas Fang said: “The directors are not expecting to report operating profits in the short term but are satisfied that the development of the brand and of the business are progressing in line with their long-term strategic objectives.”
The company’s owners, the Hong Kong-based Fang family, bought the company in 2000 from Dawson International for about £6m. Although it is now run from Hong Kong and London following the closure of its historic base in Hawick in 2008, some production is carried out at Scottish mills.
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