Hornby Regulatory News (HRN)

28 Jan 2008 07:00

Hornby PLC28 January 2008 Hornby Plc ("Hornby" or "the Company") Trading Update Hornby is today issuing its regular update on trading for its second half todate, including the important Christmas and January period. Trading Update Following a strong first half performance, the Company continued to experiencesignificant growth in the UK market during the pre-Christmas period. Europeandemand was also strong and sales increased significantly, although to a slightlylesser extent than expected, due to delays in the rate of new productintroductions. Order intake and sales for the final quarter (January-March) areexpected to be above the strong levels experienced last year. Strategy Update The Company continues to make very good progress in rebuilding the sales of thebrands it acquired in Continental Europe. Hornby is in the process ofestablishing itself as a strong contender in all key European markets. Thisstrategy of targeting stable, collector markets across Europe represents asignificant growth opportunity and will continue to broaden our operations andreduce further the Company's dependence on the UK market. It is clear that the rate of new product introduction required to meet marketdemand in Europe is placing additional strain on our supply chain. Steps arebeing taken to strengthen the management and manufacturing resources availableto the company in this respect. The re-launch and future development of the acquired Airfix/Humbrol brands iswell under way. The new Doctor Who kit, produced under licence from BBCWorldwide, has achieved widespread critical acclaim. The revitalisation of theAirfix product range is continuing apace and this will lead to further salesgrowth in all major markets. In addition to the Doctor Who licence the Companyhas secured the licence for a range of Shaun the Sheep products and in classiccollection kits the much anticipated Nimrod kit will be launched before the endof March. Product Update The Company's new products launched this month to our retail customers have beenextremely well received. The further development of the Scalextric and Hornby digital ranges is expectedto continue to lead to an increase in average prices as consumers migrate to thedigital format. Scalextric continues to consolidate its position as the marketleader for digitally controlled slot-racing in most major world markets, and for2008 Scalextric products based on the Vodafone Mercedes McLaren team and itsoutstanding driver Lewis Hamilton will continue to set the pace. In addition thecompany has secured the licence for a range of products based on the forthcomingJames Bond movie. The Hornby Digital Control system for model railways is also expected tocontinue to gain momentum during 2008. Positive feedback from early adopters,coupled with new product introductions such as the infra-red controller,locomotives featuring authentic sounds and more powerful electronic chips giveconfidence that the Hornby system will be established rapidly in the main UKmarket and also throughout Europe. Chairman, Neil Johnson commented: " A strong finish to 2007 shows once again that Hornby is extremely resilient intimes of economic uncertainty. " Strategically, we have continued to make very good progress in building abroadly based hobby business across Europe. There is excellent potential tocontinue this process and to leverage the brand strengths we have in the keyEuropean markets. The acquired Airfix/Humbrol brands are expected to continue tobuild on the strong growth already achieved, with further significantopportunities to develop this business in new markets over the coming years." -ends - Date: January 28th 2008For further information contact: Hornby Plc City ProfileNeil Johnson, Chairman Simon CourtenayFrank Martin, Chief Executive William AttwellAndrew Morris, Group Finance Director 020-7448-324401843-233500Web: www.hornby.com There will be a conference call with the Company at 8.30am on Monday 28thJanuary 2008. The call will be hosted by Frank Martin, Chief Executive andAndrew Morris, Group Finance Director. The details are: Freefone dial-in number: 0808-1005145UK national dial-in number: 0870-2407821Participant passcode: 64934892 then # This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange