Football and style icon, David Beckham helped coffee retailer Nespresso brew up record Irish revenues of €38.6m in 2023.
In November last year, Nespresso signed up the former Manchester United idol as one of its brand ambassadors, with Nespresso UK & Ireland CEO Anna Lundstrom saying at the time that Beckham "has always had an unforgettable style, taste and passion for creating elevated experiences which are many of the qualities of Nespresso".
Now, new accounts filed by Nespresso UK Ltd show that Beckam's ambassador appointment helped give Irish sales a shot in the arm as they increased by 7.5% from £30.24m to a record £32.5m in 2023.
The Nestle-owned Nespresso operates a number of boutique outlets here, including a flagship store on Dublin’s Duke Street and the Irish business last year translates to average weekly revenues of €742,336.
In their directors’ report, the directors highlight Beckham’s appointment as "our newest brand partner".
They state: "We launched several new coffee varieties including No20, Watermelon, Ginseng, and Starbucks Reserve to highlight the incredible choice and quality coffee we offer to suit individual tastes and flavours."
The performance of the Irish stores contributed to the company's pre-tax profits increasing by 5% from £13.39m to £14.03m.
This followed overall revenues increasing by 3% from £329.9m to £338.64m which were made up of £32.5m in Irish sales and £306.12m in UK sales.
The directors state the revenue increase was driven by the ongoing success of the Vertuo Line in its business to consumer division with a very strong growth in its business to business activities.
Underlining the growth of Nespresso here, the sales last year of £32.5m were more than double Nespresso’s sales here in 2016 of £14.7m.
The Irish revenues of £32.5m make up almost 10pc of the overall UK and Irish revenues of £338.64m.
The company recorded post tax profits of £10.25m after paying corporation tax of £3.77m.
The directors are recommending a final dividend of £10.3m for 2023 and this followed a final dividend of £11m last year.
The profit takes account of non-cash depreciation costs of £6.67m.
Numbers employed across the UK and Irish operation increased from 692 to 716 and staff costs increased to £30.12m.The highest paid director received £341,800 in pay last year.
The Gatwick based company had accumulated profits of £10.59m at the end of December last.
Reporting by Gordon Deegan
