Profits have soared at Charlie Bigham’s as the chilled ready meals market leader rebuilt margins and continued to attract new consumers.
Revenues at the company rose 8.8% to £144.3m in the year to 31 August 2024 as volumes jumped by the same amount.
Its performance was driven by ever-growing shopper awareness as Bigham’s invested in national television ad campaigns and made further distribution gains, including winning more space with Tesco.
However, growth at the business, which is on the cusp of breaking into the top 50 biggest brands in the country (as measured by The Grocer’s annual report), slowed down again last year. The latest figures compare with 9.3% growth in 2022/23, following a rise in turnover of 16% in 2021/22 and 29% in 2020/21.
Bigham’s added £2.2m to EBITDA in the latest financial period to take underlying profitability to £12.7m, with a 37% increase in pre-tax profits to £7.6m.
It follows a project to rebuild margins hit by inflationary pressure in recent years, with gross margins up another 2.3% to 22.3%, although still not yet back to historical levels.
Bigham’s has invested in improving the performance of its manufacturing sites to benefit from increased efficiencies, with a special focus on controlling food waste.
CEO Patrick Cairns said it had been “a strong year” for Bigham’s. “We’ve been building momentum for the brand, introducing it to new audiences and deepening our presence in the market,” he added.
“More people than ever are aware of our quality offering following the successful launch of our TV advertising campaign and promotional activity in retailer partners.
“Both our established and new customers consistently return as a result of the quality of our food, with our customer feedback initiatives measuring its best-ever levels this year – a testament to continued investment in product development and customer satisfaction.”
Cairns continued: “Operationally, the business made strong improvements in kitchen efficiency, which began to ease margin pressures brought on by previous years of inflation. Major upgrades to internal systems and a sustained focus on employee engagement also contributed to the company’s improved performance. We are pleased that Charlie Bigham’s, as an employer, has once again been recognised through the ‘Great Places to Work’ accreditation.
“This year, we’ve grown our top line while delivering the best-quality food we’ve ever made. With stronger systems, better margins and more people discovering and enjoying our food, we’re in a great position to push forward and drive further uptake of our quality offering.”
The company is expecting consistent organic growth over the coming years but warned the trajectory would continue to slow in the “next year or two” because of the current economic backdrop.
“We still have only 5.9% market share of premium ready meals and a resilient customer base and we continue to invest across the business including quality, capacity and the brand,” Bigham’s said in the Companies House accounts.
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