Portmeirion Regulatory News (PMP)

14 January 2021

Portmeirion Group PLC (the 'Group')

Trading Update

Encouraging performance, ahead of market expectations, due to strong seasonal trading

Portmeirion Group PLC, the designer, manufacturer and worldwide distributor of high quality homewares under the Portmeirion, Spode, Royal Worcester, Wax Lyrical, Nambé and Pimpernel brands, is pleased to announce that it expects revenue for the year to 31 December 2020 to be at least 6% ahead of market consensus expectations following a strong second half and seasonal trading performance.

Revenue for the year ended 31 December 2020 will be at least £87 million (2019: £92.8 million) and as a result the Group expects to be able to report a net profit for the full year ahead of market expectations. The revenue represents a reduction of 6% over the previous year and a reduction of 12% in like-for-like sales (due to the acquisition of Nambé in July 2019 and Portmeirion Canada in August 2020).

As previously reported the Group's sales have been impacted by the multiple lockdown closures of stores in our key retail markets due to Covid-19. Second half sales were down 7% on a like-for-like basis from the same period in 2019 representing a continued trend of improving sales for our homeware brands. This compared favourably to the 20% reduction we saw in the first half of 2020.

Online sales channel growth remains a key area of strategic focus and investment. Online sales performed strongly through the second half of the year. We now estimate that 47% of our total UK/US sales are made through online channels (2019: 30%) and sales from our own ecommerce platforms grew by 60% from 2019 and now represent 13% of total Group sales. We expect to see continued growth in online sales channels in 2021.

Mike Raybould, Chief Executive, said:

"Although 2020 has been a challenging year and our sales markets have been significantly impacted by Covid-19, we are hugely encouraged by the resilience of our brands and most recently our strong seasonal sales performance.

We have taken a long term view through 2020 and increased investment spend behind our key strategic objectives; in particular online sales channel development and the efficiency and capabilities of our factories and warehouses. We believe this will accelerate growth in future years. We have an exciting pipeline of new products to launch around the world in 2021 which we expect will contribute to sales growth across our key sales markets.

There is no doubt that Covid-19 and the restrictions imposed by government lockdowns will continue to bring challenges through 2021. However our operations remain open and our proven international brand strength, growing online presence and strong balance sheet provide a platform for us to grow across our key sales markets.

We remain confident in our strategic plan, the strength of our brands and the long term opportunities to grow our business."

We expect to announce the Group's preliminary results for the year ended 31 December 2020 on 18 March 2021.

Notes: This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014.

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