Profits drop off at bed maker

At its annual meeting yesterday (18 September) Airsprung chairman Stuart Lyons said he had noted in the company’s Report and Accounts the rapid increases in raw material and fuel prices, combined with weakness in the housing market and low retail activity, and how they were affecting trading prospects. He went on: “The change in the trading environment has been extremely sudden, and revenues for the first five months to the end of August have been substantially down on last year. After two years of satisfactory results it is inevitable that the first six months of the current year will show a trading loss.” However, he said management at the 100 year-old, Trowbridge, Wiltshire-based business had been taking vigorous action to reduce costs and increase prices, and the benefits of this were now working their way into the profit and loss account. “The month of August showed a welcome improvement in the performance trend, with a recovery of gross margins which we expect to continue over the next months, as input prices become more stable,” Lyons continued. A number of initiatives were under way to improve the group's performance, including contract business from the hotel sector, an overseas licensing programme, and new purchasing, merchandise and sales developments. He concluded: “The recent difficulties in the banking and financial services sector suggest that the UK consumer economy will be extremely fragile for many months to come. Nevertheless, our management teams are confident in the steps they have taken to date, and I expect to be able to give a more optimistic forecast when we announce our interim results later this year.” The company currently produces over 600,000 beds and mattresses a year under a number of brand names including Airsprung Beds, The Windsor Bed Company, Hush and Gainsborough.