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Off-Piste Wines see sales rise 17% to £35m
UK brand owner and drink supplier Off-Piste Wines has recorded sales up 17% to £35m as it eyes up further global growth.
Off-Piste Wines launched its Most Wanted pouches in April
In results lodged at Companies House, the supermarket supplier and brand owner commended the “excellent” result, which came despite the competitive and challenging market and it had a clear plan to build its brands in the domestic and international market.
The company’s brands include the Most Wanted range, which has seen sales of 3 million bottles this year. It was developed by Off-Piste winemaker Clem Yates MW and npd and brand manager Rachel Archer, the brains behind Copestick Murray’s ‘I heart wine’ brand and launched in May 2015.
However operating profit at the Cheltenham-based form was down 1% to 2.8m on the back of currency movements and at £0.6m investment in staffing to bolster its growth plans.
“The political forces we have seen post the Brexit announcement and especially their negative impact on the pound sterling, have undoubtedly made for a much harder environment to trade within. Nonetheless the company has grown earning and gross margin significantly during the year thanks to the success of our commercial focus and long-term growth plan,” managing director Andy Talbot wrote.
Although the majority of the business lies in the UK, international sales grew 74% to £1.74million and international growth is expected to outstrip domestic growth, the directors said. Currently it sells brands in around twenty country, as far apart as Canada and New Zealand.
Last year the company bolstered its senior management team, with joint managing-directors Paul Letheren and Ant Fairbanks stepping up to CEO roles, and finance director Andy Talbot taking on the managing directorship role. National account manager Mark Petitt was appointed sales director with Katie Thompson joining from Convivialit to become commercial manager, Rachel Osbourne becoming marketing manager and Neil Maughan appointed technical manager.