Peterborough manufacturer takes action to deal with double challenge

Creightons, which employs 340 staff in Lincoln Road, Werrington, says a 36.3 per cent in sales has been driven by its decision to focus its production on hygiene products.

Figures released by the company for the six months to the end of September, show its sales grew by £8.62 million to £32.7 million while profits before tax rose by 63.8 per cent to £2.90 million.

Chairman William McIlroy said: “The main driver of this sales growth has been the increased sales of hygiene products, sanitising gels and hand washes, primarily through our reinvigorated Pure Touch brand.

“The Pure Touch products were mainly sold to the Department of Health and Social Care as part of the NHS PPE procurement plan, and to major UK retailers.”

Looking ahead, Mr McIlroy said measures had been taken to deal with an uncertain impact to the business as the UK left the EU.

He said: “The Group operates globally and may be affected by Brexit developments, which could provide a number of challenges.”

The Group has registered a new subsidiary, Potter & Moore based in Ireland, to be used as an EU base for recording regulatory information.

The company has established a subsidiary in Germany, Creightons GmbH, to ease trading within the EU.

Mr McIlroy said: “Any actual or perceived barriers to free trade are an area of concern for us. As a result of Brexit, the Group is exposed to potential currency fluctuations.”

The company also revealed that its net cash at hand stands at £2.38 million - up from £1.57 million last year.

It paid a final dividend to investors of 0.50p per ordinary share in October - up from 40p last year.

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