Revenues stabilise at Derrimon
Company delivers strong results in its just-released 2020 annual report
MANUFACTURING and distribution company Derrimon Trading Group is recovering well from the novel coronavirus pandemic, with revenues and profits stabilising.
In its just-released 2020 annual report, Derrimon reported record revenue and net profit of $12.7 billion and $311.1 million, respectively. The report details the extent of the group’s ability to weather the pandemic, which initially caused a dip in revenues and profits that are now on the rise.
Notwithstanding the extraordinary event of the novel coronavirus pandemic, the group was still able to achieve varying successes across its subsidiaries. The annual report details profit after tax of $225.644 million for the company and $311.089 million for the consolidated group.
The Derrick Cotterell-led board says “the financial results continue to be encouraging... as it indicates growth in many of the key indicators as well as demonstrates that the strategies that we continue to implement have borne positive outcomes and contributed positively to the bottom line”.
The board contends that, “The stability in revenue recorded in both the distribution and retail segments of the business, despite the strict, government-related measures taken during the year to combat the pandemic, was very encouraging. We achieved revenue of $11.65 billion and $12.77 billion for the company and group, whilst growing gross profit to $2.167 billion and $2.483 billion, respectively, for company and group.”
This financial performance is commendable and continues to set the pace for future growth from which, the board says, within this current financial year, it is looking forward to the improvements in financial gains to be derived in the future. During 2020 the group was able to finalise the moving of its distribution centre to Ferry Pen, located off the Mandela Highway in St Andrew.
The management reports that, “This new facility has helped us to improve our efficiency and also provided much-needed floor space to keep pace with the rapid portfolio expansion. Our Retail Division, which comprises Sampars & Select Grocers, continued to do well and were particularly instrumental in serving customers during lockdown periods because of the pandemic.
“We are particularly elated with the fact that our online store, shopsampars.com, was able to withstand the voluminous orders which were submitted during this time. Our team members worked tirelessly beyond midnight on several occasions to ensure that we could fulfill our customers’ orders,” the management shared.
Caribbean Flavours and Fragrances, which is among the group’s subsidiary companies, performed well by playing an integral part in supplying its customers during this challenging period, and also used the opportunity to launch sanitisation products.
According to the management, “This proved to be very useful to businesses which wanted a bulk sanitizer product quickly in order to assist with safeguarding their establishment.
Derrimon’s pallet-producing subsidiary, Woodcats, commenced its automation and retooling programme and it is anticipated that this investment will yield significant efficiencies for the business going forward.”
The Derrimon Group reports that “The upcoming year will undoubtedly pose its own set of challenges but we will still have to balance the reality of operating in a pandemic while executing our strategic plan. We are dedicated to implementing our Derrimon 2.0 plan, which will see the group ascend to new heights. The group will continue to grow organically as well as through mergers and acquisitions.”
The leadership and supporting team members are said to be highly motivated and excited about this new journey, and are looking forward to collaborating with all stakeholders to convert these ambitious plans into fruition.
Company directors in their 2020 report to shareholders said, “The financial results continue to be encouraging to us as a board as it indicates growth in many of the key indicators as well as demonstrates that the strategies that we continue to implement have borne positive outcomes and contributed positively to the bottom line.”
They highlighted that the stability in revenue recorded in both the distribution and retail segments of the business — which came about despite the strict, government-related measures taken during the year to combat the pandemic — was very encouraging.