Temperature-controlled operator Reed Boardall said that the loss of a customer, and competitive pressures in its transport division, led to dips in turnover and profit in its most recent financial year.
In the 12 months ending 31 March 2016 turnover at Reed Boardall Group fell from £65.9m to £64.3m, while pre-tax profit fell slightly to £4.26m from £4.28m.
The year-on-year fall in turnover, said Reed Boardall, was attributable to a minor decrease in volumes due to the expected loss of a large customer part way through the financial period. The company added that it had “very quickly” made up the volume of stock subsequently.
It added that its transport division continued to be challenging, with competition making it difficult for the group to recover the increases in cost incurred during the year.
Marcus Boardall, deputy chief executive at Reed Boardall, said: “With consumers shopping more frequently at outlets with restricted storage space, our customers are demanding smaller and swifter deliveries.
“This fits well with our business model of a 142,000 pallet storage facility operating on a single site, enabling us to respond quickly with ‘order today, delivery tomorrow’ as well as providing excellent value as we are able to combine products from various customers,” he added.
