23 March 2022

Pittards PLC

Final Results for the year ended 31 December 2021

 

Return to full-year profitability; proposed final dividend; improved Order Book for 2022

Pittards plc (AIM: PTD), the specialist producer of technically advanced leather and luxury leather goods for retailers, manufacturers, and distributors, is pleased to announce its audited Final Results for the year ended 31 December 2021. 

 

Commenting on the results, Stephen Yapp, Chairman of Pittards, said: "Pittards has acquitted itself robustly…  with a return to full-year profitability. The resilience of the Group was particularly evidenced by an increased sales revenue to £19.7m….reflecting recovery in our core business and further development of our new business sectors, including interiors and shoes, resulting in a positive EBITDA of £1.4m and a profit before tax of £0.5m."

Highlights: Financial

·          Revenues of £19.7m (2020: £15.2m)

·          Gross margin of 28 per cent (2020: 21 per cent)

·          EBITDA of £1.4m (2020: negative £1.2m)

·          Profit before tax of £0.46m (2020: £2.28m loss), a satisfactory recovery given the wider macro pressures in the second half

·          Earnings/(loss) per share of 2.12p (2020: loss of 17.67p)

·          Proposed final dividend of 0.5p per share making total dividend of 1.0p per share for the year 

·          Net debt at year-end of £10.69m (2020: £10.12m)

·          NAV at year-end of 101.9p per share (2020: 107.0p)

·          Sales order book opened 2022 stronger than at the start of each of the previous three years

 

Highlights: Operational

·          Underlying stable profitability and return to pre covid levels

·          Second half remained profitable, despite logistic and input cost challenges, and timing of price increases to customers

·          Inventory increased by £0.3m, due to buffer stock from Ethiopia to mitigate supply chain risk

·          Q4-2021 sales orders resuming from both interiors and big shoe markets

·          Reduced risk in Ethiopia, whilst growing full shoe production as a key development business

·          Developing collaboration with Vivobarefoot, a key international shoe customer

·          Continued focus and investment in innovation to deliver better technical performance, creating sustainable products across a broader

             range of markets including big shoe, interiors, military and equestrian

 

On current trading and outlook, Reg Hankey, CEO, added:

"We have started the current year with a better Order Book than for each of the last three years and we believe that this higher level of demand is sustainable. In addition to our traditional markets, which have recovered well, we are now also well placed to respond to our new strategic market sectors of interiors (automotive, aviation and mass transit), large shoe brands and shoe production in Ethiopia which are set for faster growth than 2021.

 

"With a more efficient cost base we will also be able to respond more positively to recovering demand in the global marketplace and the new capital projects implemented during 2021 will allow us to grow capacity in a more efficient way during 2022. We remain committed to a more balanced, agile business with a broader range of customers, and we continue to believe that opportunities outweigh risks to build on our 2021 performance in the current year and beyond."

 

Certain information contained in this announcement would have constituted inside information (as defined by Article 7 of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014) ("MAR") prior to its release as part of this announcement and is disclosed, in accordance with the Company's obligations under Article 17 of MAR.

For further information, please contact:

 

Pittards PLC   

+44 (0) 1935 474321

Web: www.pittards.com

Stephen Yapp - Non-Executive Chairman

Reg Hankey - CEO

Richard Briere - CFO

 

WH Ireland

+44 (0)20 7220 1666

Web: www.whirelandcb.com

Mike Coe

Sarah Mather

 

Walbrook PR

+44 (0)20 7933 8780 or +44 (0)7768 807631

Email:- [email protected]

Paul Vann

Nicholas Johnson

Chairman's statement for the year ended 31 December 2021

 

I can report that Pittards has acquitted itself robustly against the strategies that we have in place, with a return to full year profit.

 

The resilience of the Group was particularly evidenced by an increased sales revenue to £19.7m resulting in a positive EBITDA of £1.4m and profit before tax of £0.5m, with returns on capital employed exceeding our weighted average cost of capital.

 

Sales increased by 29%, reflecting recovery in our core business and further development of our new business sectors, including interiors and shoes. The second half financial performance was affected by challenges in the supply chain, together with general inflationary pressures. 

 

Throughout the year we have managed our inventory prudently, particularly in the light of unrest in Ethiopia and delays in reliability of shipping. As a result, we intentionally increased our raw material stocks in the UK to ensure reliable supply for our customers. 

 

A remarkable contribution has been made by all our staff once again during this year. We are pleased that our staff headcount has remained broadly the same, and reflects a well-balanced, diverse team, both in Ethiopia and UK, capable of meeting the challenges facing the business.  I thank them all for their considerable efforts.

 

The Board is confident in the Group's business strategy and is committed to its future success, with Board members increasing their shareholding in Pittards. The Board's collective shareholding rose to 7.6% at the end of 2021 (2020: 6.4%).

 

There were no changes to the Board during the year. As previously announced, Richard Briere (CFO), will be stepping down in April 2022 after 3 years and we thank him for his contribution.

 

In Q3, 2021 we undertook a further modest share buyback of 40,000 shares, resulting in 974,210 shares now being held in treasury. Also, in Q4 2021, we returned to the dividend list with a payment of 0.5p per share. A final dividend of 0.5p per share is being proposed for 2021 making the total dividend for the year 1.0p per share (2020: £ nil ). Subject to the approval of shareholders at the AGM, to be held on 17 May 2022, the final dividend will be paid on 5 August 2022 to shareholders on the register at the close of business on 1 July 2022. The shares will go ex-dividend on 30 June 2022.

 

Outlook

 

In accordance with our strategic priorities, we are delivering a broader range (including finished shoes and packs for automotive) of products to  more market segments ( including outdoor endurance, interiors and automotive ) therefore creating a more balanced portfolio. We continue to invest in new leading-edge technology, investing £0.8m in 2021, and we have planned further capital investments in 2022/23. Our focus continues, on growth, driven by innovation and sustainable development.

 

We have entered 2022 with a much stronger order book than the previous year. It remains too early to judge how strong the recovery will be, given the heightened uncertainty caused by the conflict in Ukraine, inflationary pressures, and  continued supply chain challenges.

 

However, we remain cautiously optimistic that the group will see continued growth in the year.

 

Stephen Yapp

Chairman

23 March 2022

 

 

 

 

Chief Executive Officer's report

 

 

·              Profit before tax of £0.46m (£2.38m loss: 2020), a satisfactory recovery given the wider macro pressures in the second half

·              EBITDA £1.4m (2020: negative £1.1m)

·              Sales order book opened 2022 stronger than the start of each of the previous three years

·              Inventory increased by £0.3m, due to buffer stock from Ethiopia to mitigate supply chain risk

·              Q4-2021 sales orders resuming from both interiors and big shoe markets

·              Reduced risk in Ethiopia, whilst growing full shoe production as a key development business

·              Developing relationship with Vivobarefoot, a key shoe customer for our Ethiopian business

During the first quarter of 2021, together with many other businesses, we were challenged with the renewed impact of a third lock down due to COVID-19. As the global pandemic unfolded, this unusual situation continued to affect our people, our customers and supply chains.

We continued with our responsive approach from 2020 to the challenges we faced and reviewed this on a weekly basis. The key pillars of our plan focused on:

·      Safety of people - Implementing best practice in line with government advice

 

·      Customer support - Continued to supply and ongoing dialogue 

 

·      Cash management - Strict daily control

 

·      Cost control - Realignment of all costs

Sales demand for leather and related goods continued to improve throughout the year with full year revenue at £19.7m (2020: £15.2m).

The changing shape of the business is aligned with our strategic priorities to achieve a more balanced customer and product portfolio, in particular the inroads made via Ethiopia in shoe production and sales, together with UK interiors and key shoe accounts. These remain priority development markets for the Group with volumes increasing by 12%. We expanded our design and production management functions to support a broader product offering.

Over the last two years we have established a more resilient business that is more profitable at lower levels of activity than in 2019, and 2021 built on this. Whilst costs overall rose as a result of increased production, administrative costs reduced.

We continued to operate COVID safe working procedures in line with government guidance throughout the year. We are fortunate in having relatively large production facilities in both the UK and Ethiopia which enabled us to implement socially distanced working practices. 

Gross margin was 28% (2020: 21%) with EBITDA recovering to £1.4m (2020: negative £1.1m) and PBT of £0.46m (2020: £2.3m loss). Headcount rose modestly to 1,108 (2020: 1,096) with the increase being centered on production and technical staff.

In Ethiopia, the development of the COVID pandemic lags the UK. This coupled with wider instability in the country, during 2021, meant we had a raised level of supply chain risk. Although the Ethiopian factories remained open throughout the period the board decided it was prudent to mitigate this risk further through acquiring additional buffer stock of the unique sheepskins that are used to make our technical glove leathers. 

Overall inventories rose to £15.3m (2020: £15.0m) due to the increase in raw materials explained above and offset by a reduction in older inventory of approximately  £1.0m.

Raw material prices have broadly stabilized, having peaked in Q3 2021. We have successfully broadened our procurement strategy to achieve a more consistent supply and purchase price from a broader supply base, reducing supply chain risks.

Net debt at 31 December increased £0.58m, to £10.69m (2020: £10.11m), mostly as a consequence of more bufffer material held in Yeovil.

US dollar rates moved slightly against us during 2021, although average exchange rates were broadly unchanged on 2020. The Group has hedged between 40% and 60% of requirements, resulting in an average exchange rate of $1.355 through to June 2023. The average rate in 2021 for the Group was $1.37, broadly unchanged on 2020.

During 2021, we invested £0.8m in machinery to improve our efficiency and expand our capability and capacity.

Market view

We adapted our approach to customer engagement through the broader use of virtual meetings, as the obvious travel inhibiting factors of the pandemic remained throughout the year.

During the last two years, the overall demand for leather has been affected by numerous global factors, principally COVID-19 lockdowns, China/US tariffs and overall weakness in the global economy.  Although Brexit had little impact on the Group there have been some complications around logistics and administration.

Given the increase in consumers' appetite for outdoor pursuits, including golf and endurance sports, we have started to see some recovery in demand in these market segments as social restrictions ease globally. Some of our other market segments have been harder hit by the pandemic, most notably the aviation and automotive industry, where global sales are down significantly since 2019 levels, albeit we continued to sell into these segments. Notwithstanding the challenges faced by these industries, we have focused on innovation to deliver better technical performance and create sustainable products across a broader range of markets, including big shoe, interiors, military and equestrian.

We continue to develop our direct-to-consumer digital sales channels in the UK and Ethiopia.

Operations

2021 was a challenging year for the Operations team as we increased sales by 29%, whilst managing efficiency and costs, together with training additional new young members of our workforce to allow for further growth in the future.

Ben Johnson joined in December 2020 as the UK Director of Production.  He and his team have made substantial progress and have successfully installed a high level of capital equipment during his first full year.  The extra sheepskin stocks from Ethiopia required additional processing in the UK, which added to the complexity but benefitted from our investment in new machinery which delivered improved quality and yield. 

Investing in the next generation is an important part of our business. We were approved for the UK Government's Kickstart scheme for 16-24 year olds, we finished the year with a good outcome creating permanent jobs for over 10 Kickstart members.  We also continue to recruit Apprentices into the business, by adding two further. 

The reliability of logistics, in particular, shipping, and transport, but also stock shortages in the supply chains has meant continually replanning of the production. Freight costs have increased dramatically adding  £0.3m on a like for like basis. The team continue to work on finding innovative solutions to these challenges. These rising costs also apply to our competitors offering some new opportunities as new supply chains develop. 

In Ethiopia we have continued to broaden our manufacturing capability in finished products and have increased sales in footwear alongside the production of shoe leather. This has so far been focused upon producing leather and shoes for Vivobarefoot and the local market.

During the year we responded to higher volumes by challenging how we work. Processing is split between Ethiopia and the UK, and the UK has taken on  a higher proportion of the processing of our technical performance finished leather.

Outlook for 2022

The global pandemic has had a big impact upon our business. Our resilience has enabled us to come through one of the most serious set of circumstances we are likely to face, and we have emerged a stronger business today.

Looking forward to 2022, we have started the year with a better order book than each of the last three years and we believe that this higher level of demand is sustainable. In addition to our traditional markets, which have recovered well, we are also well placed to respond to our new strategic market sectors of interiors (automotive, aviation and mass transit), larger shoe brands and shoe production in Ethiopia which are set for faster growth than 2021. 

We have during March 2022 signed a letter of intent with Vivobarefoot with planned sales in excess of $2m USD. We aim to manufacturer and sell over 50% more shoes to this customer compared to 2021, which assists in underpinning our confidence to continue to grow back sales.

With a more efficient cost base we will also be able to respond more positively to recovering demand in the global marketplace, and new capital projects implemented during 2021 will allow us to grow capacity in a more efficient way during 2022. Recruitment is expected to be significantly lower in 2022 than 2021, given that the newly shaped team, is now established.

Our commitment to our sustainable and responsible supply chains are well established and we will continue to build upon our continuous improvement culture which is consistent with the aspirations of our growth customers.

Our employees have come through many challenges during 2021. By working together and evolving our working practices we will continue to develop our flexible approach allowing agile responses to our customers' needs.

Although there are still some unpredictable macro-economic factors, specifically the instability in Europe,  and inflationary cost pressures, our confidence is growing as we build a better balanced business with a broader range of customers. We are conscious of the unstable situation in Ukraine and Russia, and specifically the sanctions environment. Our direct exposure to those territories is not material. We do anticipate that there will be some challenges arising in global markets more generally.

Whilst the reliability of global supply chains remains a doubt, we will continue to focus on inventory levels and efficient use of working capital.

We remain committed to a more balanced, agile business and we continue to believe that opportunities outweigh risks to build on our 2021 full year  performance.

Reg Hankey

Chief Executive Officer

23 March 2022

 

Financial review

 

Sales revenue increased to £19.7m (2020: £15.2m), despite periods of substantial disruption, with gross profit rising strongly to £5.5m (2020: £3.2m). We achieved improved gross margins, underpinned by the low-cost facility in Ethiopia, greater operational efficiency through lower labour cost per output and a broader product range with better margin contribution.

 

Cost savings remained a key feature of 2021, with annual cost savings of £2m heading into 2021 compared to 2019 , whilst 2020 benefitted from furlough support of £0.6m reducing our costs (2021: Nil). We are not reliant on any form of cash deferment or subsidy during or at the end of the financial year. We did claim £185k of kick start grant funds, to support the kick start program, which reduced staff costs.

 

Overall inventory levels rose to £15.3m (2020: £15.0m)  reflecting the strategic increased purchases of raw material in the second half in the light of challenging logistics, and unrest in Ethiopia, this was offset by a £1m reduction in older slow moving stock. We are confident we will build on the progress made in 2021 and 2020, as our newly aligned capacity plan and reprocessing of existing stock to broaden utilisation of slower moving stock, continues to take effect.

 

Working capital has also been adversely affected by the changing shape of the business. Credit terms to new markets and customer mix have resulted in a modest increase in debtor terms and similarly to balance working capital creditors days which grew by 7 days .

 

Net debt was £10.69m ( £10.12m: 2020).

 

One of the Group's key financial measures is gearing. Our gearing rose to 81% at the end of 2021 (2020: 73%) we remain committed to progressively  reducing gearing.

 

End of year financial position and commitments

 

Total net debt (including lease obligations and overdrafts) increased to £10.69m as of 31 December 2021. Headroom on Group facilities was £2.6m (£3.1m: 2020). The UK business achieved positive free cashflow being cashflow from operations and after working capital excluding capital expenditure for the year, despite rising inventory.

 

Net assets decreased from £13.9m to £13.1m, due to entirely to the devaluation of the Ethiopian BIRR on Ethiopian held assets. The net assets of the group include £2.4m of net assets that are held in Ethiopia.

The Group is actively seeking to mitigate foreign exchange risk as far as practical, and US dollar remains a key risk which is managed. Due to economic uncertainty, we eased the hedging strategy in 2021 by lowering US$ cover to 40% and extending it to June 2023.

We plan modest capital expenditure in 2022, of circa £0.4m across the Group after a significant spend in 2021 of £0.8m, but these spends will be carefully targeted with short payback, operational efficiencies and growth prospects. We have not yet formally committed to this spend.

 

With the reduction in transit stock likely to materially reduce by the end of the first half of 2022, we anticipate a modest fall in inventory levels and improving cash headroom, as our purchasing commitment for inventory is expected to be lower during the first half of 2022.

 

Gross margins

 

Gross margin increased to 28% (2020: 21%).

 

Business environment

 

The leather industry is a global business; wherever countries have meat and dairy industries, hides and skins will be produced as by-products. Group policy is to only process hides and skins that are a by-product of these industries.

 

The Group operates in the UK, where it sources most of its hides, and in Ethiopia, where it sources local hair sheep skins, goat skins and hides. The Group exports on average 79% of its production into 39 countries over four continents.

 

The demand for quality leathers that protect and enhance user experience, especially in sports science, and consumer appetite for outdoor activities, including golf and endurance, has helped the recovery in these core markets in which we operate.

 

 

Anti-bribery and corruption

 

Pittards is committed to conducting its business affairs to ensure that it does not engage in or facilitate any form of bribery or corruption in any parts of its supply chain or in interaction with other stakeholders regardless of geographical location.  Expected standards of behaviour are outlined in the anti-bribery and corruption policy, which also provides guidance on the giving and receiving of gifts and hospitality.  We have not traded with Russian companies during recent years, including the full year 2021 or so far in 2022.

 

Principal risks and uncertainties

 

Risk management is an important part of the management process throughout the Group, with regular reviews of the key risks identified and the adequacy of the controls in place to mitigate the risks. The current risks considered to be key to the Group are as follows:

 

Coronavirus (COVID-19)

 

The safety of our staff, customers and wider community remains our key priority, and we will observe government guidance. The uncertainty of a lock down appears more predictable now. The lockdown enforced in January 2021 did not materially impede our progress. We have learnt a great deal about operating the business through periods of disruption, and we maintain contingency both in resources and available funding should further unforeseen disruption arise.

 

Currency

 

The Group is subject to the current volatility in the currency markets, particularly US dollar, Ethiopian Birr and Euro. The Group manages its exposure by maintaining a natural hedge where possible, for the US dollar and Euro. In 2021, the Group entered foreign forward currency contracts to hedge against movements in the US dollar, adopting a cash flow hedging strategy, in response to the anticipated continued volatile currency markets.  The Group has moderate forward cover of 40% through to June 2023 and will continue to review strategy in this area in the light of certainty of future sales, mix of business, customer sentiment and order flow. 

 

 

Political

 

Globally the political environment has been variable during 2021. We view this as short term in nature, and it has not impeded business operations. Despite the unrest in Ethiopia during 2021 we continued to trade as normal with no disruption to operations. In the UK, we now have more certainty regarding the country's future relationship with the European Union. The Group's exposure to Europe is supply driven, with some of its purchases derived from Europe. The global situation has a less optimistic tone at the start of 2022, which has naturally created uncertainty for all businesses, and ours is no exception, although in the near-term we have not experienced any material impact to our staff, business, or customers.

 

Supply

 

The availability of quality raw materials is paramount to the business. The Group owns Ethiopia Tannery Share Company (which is a main supplier of Ethiopian skins) and has strong relationships with other major suppliers of skins and hides in Ethiopia, the UK and around the world.

 

Energy cost and waste management

 

The Group is exposed to price volatility in the supply of energy and an increased burden of environmental costs. The Group uses industry experts to obtain the best energy rates available and continuous improvements are sought in reducing waste of all kinds from the business.

 

 

Working capital

 

The Group actively monitors its liquidity position to ensure it has enough available funds and working capital to operate and meet its planned commitments. The Group continues to have excellent working relationships with its banking partners both in the UK and Ethiopia and has sufficient facility levels to meet its planned requirements.

 

Through its activities, the Group is exposed to a variety of financial risks; market (including currency, price, and interest rate), liquidity and credit. 

 

 

Share buybacks and dividends

 

During November 2021, the company paid a dividend to all shareholders of 0.5p per share, excluding ordinary shares held in treasury, and a final dividend has been proposed of 0.5p per ordinary share and, if approved, will be recorded within the financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2022. The company purchased a further 40,000 of its own ordinary shares during Q3-2021, with treasury shares rising to 974,210,  representing 7% of the issued share capital.

 

 

Richard Briere

Chief Financial Officer

23 March 2022

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Statement of cashflows
For the year ended 31 December 2021						Group			Company
						2021	2020		2021	2020
					Note	£'000	£'000		£'000	£'000
Cash flows from operating activities
Cash generated from operations					8	181	549		(139)	218
Tax paid						(83)	16		-	-
Interest paid						(447)	(489)		(194)	(159)
Net cash (used in) from operating activities						(349)	76		(333)	59
Cash flows from investing activities
Purchases of property, plant and equipment						(372)	(252)		(325)	(191)
Purchases of intangible assets						(11)	(12)		(11)	(12)
Proceeds from sale of plant						42	-		42	-
Net cash (used) in investing activities						(341)	(264)		(294)	(203)
Cash flows from financing activities
Proceeds from borrowings						-	3,334		-	2,750
Repayment of bank loans						(733)	(1,951)		(391)	(1,209)
Repayment of obligations under finance leases						(21)	(71)		(15)	(71)
Payment of equity dividends						(65)	-		(65)	-
Purchase of own ordinary shares						(20)	(355)		(20)	(355)
Net cash (used) / generated in financing activities						(839)	957		(491)	1,115
(Decrease) / Increase in cash and cash equivalents						(1,529)	769		(1,118)	971
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year						(5,077)	(6,131)		(4,586)	(5,563)
Exchange gains/(losses) on cash and cash equivalents						238	285		(45)	6
Cash and cash equivalents at end of year						(6,368)	(5,077)		(5,749)	(4,586)

 

 1.       Basis of preparation