The significant resurgent growth in the popularity of vinyl records contributed to sales at the Irish arm of music giant Universal Music increasing by 17% to €26.3m last year.
Universal Music Ireland Ltd counts Taylor Swift, Dermot Kennedy, Picture This and U2 amongst its roster of stars.
New accounts show that the company recorded almost a five fold increase in pre-tax profits to €607,818 on the back of the increase in revenues.
The directors state that the revenue increase from €22.56m to €26.31m was mainly "due to the significant resurgent growth in the popularity of vinyl records" and to the continued positive growth in subscribers to legal streaming music services.
The directors state that the company maintained its leading market share in the Irish music market in 2021.
The company's cost of sales increased from €18.07m to €21.1m while its administrative expenses increased from €4.36m to €4.47m.
Universal Music Ireland Ltd also counts Justin Bieber and Billie Eilish amongst its stand out acts.
The company last year did not pay out any dividend after paying out dividends of €500,000 in 2020.
A breakdown of revenues show that royalty and licence fee income increased from €19.2m to €20.85m with sale of goods increasing by 63% from €3.35m to €5.46m.
Numbers employed by the business last year increased by one to 20 with staff costs increasing marginally from €1.81m to €1.92m.
Remuneration, including pension payments for the firm's two directors, Mark Crossingham and Nick Younger, last year declined from €645,327 to €628,573.
The remuneration was made up of pay of €590,333 and pension contributions of €38,240.
At the end of December last, the firm had shareholder funds of €3m that included accumulated profits of €2.5m.
The directors state that the company faces risks and uncertainties, mainly as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic which could include but are not limited to the current world and local economic downturn and its effect on customer spending in all areas of the Irish music market and its effect on discretionary consumer spending in general.
The directors state that they manage these risks by ensuring that the company has adequate current financial support and by actively seeking out new business opportunities.
Reporting by Gordon Deegan
