Singer (Sri Lanka) PLC announced its results for the quarter ended March 31, 2018 last week.
The results showed an increase of 13% in revenue amounting to Rs. 13.6 billion compared to the corresponding quarter in previous year, in spite of challenging business conditions.
In the period under review for the three months ended March 31, 2018, profit before tax was Rs. 419.8 million, recording a slight growth of 3% over the previous year. However Corporate taxes increased during the period under review as subsidiaries declared dividends resulting in withholding tax. As a result the profit after tax for the period decreased by 14%. At the same time, dividends boosted the results of the parent company and the profits for the quarter increased by 51% to Rs. 481.9 million.
The accounting year of the Group has changed to March 31 to be in line with the accounting period of Hayleys PLC Group and the group revenue recorded for the fifteen months was Rs. 65.1 billion. The profit for the fifteen months was Rs. 1.2 billion.
The company anticipates improvements in business conditions during 2018 and will pursue strategies to improve revenue and margins while lowering costs via key business initiatives which are:
To grow e-commerce business and to assist in the last mile delivery of e-commerce through Singer’s extensive network.
To grow the furniture business exponentially with a wider range available in a larger range of showrooms
To accelerate the renovation and expansion of existing shops to increase the retail space to cater to additional products and brands, specifically furniture
To strengthen and enlarge the company’s manufacturing operations with new factories, additional machinery and more advanced technology.
Group CEO Asoka Pieris said, “After a smooth change of ownership Singer is successfully continuing to retain market leadership in consumer durables. We believe that with synergies with Hayleys Group and with new strategies and initiatives a bright future augurs for the Singer Group and our stakeholders.”Group Chairman Mohan Pandithage said, “Hayleys Group as the major shareholder is confident that Singer’s position as the leader in consumer durables will be strengthened as Hayleys and Singer have an excellent strategic fit to benefit from significant growth prospects.”