11:08 am, September 6, 2024
Used car supermarket chain the Trade Centre Group suffered a fall in both turnover and profit last year, selling fewer vehicles than in 2022.
Its newly published accounts for the year ended November 30, 2023 show that turnover at the Car Dealer Top 100 firm dropped by 10% to £311.341m from £345.676m the year before and pre-tax profit dipped by 5% from £6.918m to £6.588m.
Adjusted Ebitda, however, went up by 1.1% from £10.762m to £10.882m.
A total of 38,544 cars were sold versus 41,551 in 2022 – a drop of 7.2%.
During the year, the group declared and paid an interim dividend of £41.87 making a total dividend of £2.1m. That was down on 2022’s £128.62 per ordinary A share, which made a total of £6.4m.
Directors’ remuneration totalled £3.347m, which was up 30% on the £2.575m they received in 2022, with the highest-paid director receiving more than half as much again as they did the year before at £1.547m versus 2022’s figure of £1.024m.
The average monthly number of employees fell from 734 to 649, and by the end of its financial year, the company had net assets of £18.821m versus 2022’s £15.904m.
In the accompanying strategic report, signed on behalf of the board by chairman Andy Coulthurst, the group said: ‘Despite the UK’s challenging economic environment, marked by high inflation and low growth that squeezed consumer disposable incomes, we maintained profitability through strategic focus and careful management of our costs.’
The directors added: ‘Our plans to transform the business in the current trading year are well under way, with a more flexible working environment for our teams.
‘We are also transforming our retail stock profile to a newer age mix, with better use of real-time data to inform purchasing decisions.’
In the notes to the financial statements, the group said: ‘During the financial year, the UK continued to face economic challenges with low growth and inflationary pressure that resulted in lower demand in the used car sector.
‘However, there was an improvement in the availability of stock and stabilisation of wholesale prices.’
The Trade Centre Group is the primary trading subsidiary of Bailey Family Investments and operates under the brand name Trade Centre Wales from showrooms in Neath and Cardiff North, as well as the Trade Centre UK name in Wednesbury, Coventry, Rochdale and Rotherham.
Following the year end, it closed its Birmingham South store in July – a move that it said would allow it to focus on its two Midlands megastores to increase sales across the region.
In the directors’ report, Coulthurst said: ‘This closure is not considered a discontinuing operation, as the company continues to serve the region through its existing megastores in Wednesbury and Coventry.
‘We anticipate that this closure will have a positive long-term financial impact as we retain sales at our nearby megastores whilst realising cost savings.’
A board restructure saw former chief operating officer Andy Wildy and operations director Nathan Bailey leave in November 2023 and January 2024 respectively.
Pictured at top via Google Street View is the Trade Centre UK site in Wednesbury
