Revenues at the UK arm of the Smyths Toys family retail business last year increased by 3% to a record £938.7m (€1.12bn).
New accounts filed by the Galway headquartered Smyths Toys UK Ltd shows that operating profits increased by 4% to £20.3m on the back of bumper sales of best-sellers, Lego, Barbie, Nerf Guns, Paw Patrol and My Little Pony toys.
The directors said that revenues increased by £28m from £910.7m to £938.7m due to an increase in footfall in the stores and the addition of two new stores.
They said the company's gross margin decreased slightly to 17.7% in 2023, due to continued pressure on costs.
Pre-tax profits decreased by 5% to £18.4m due to net interest charges of £1.9m that did not occur in 2022.
The firm's buoyant performance resulted in the business paying out a dividend of £15m and this followed a dividend payout of £30m in 2022.
The directors said that they are pleased with the results particularly given the current economic climate and the competitive marketplace.
Numbers employed by Smyths Toys UK Ltd increased by 81 from 3,305 to 3,386.
The two new store openings in 2023 followed the opening of five new stores in 2022.
On the future developments of the business, the directors state that it is envisaged that further expansion will occur in the UK market in the coming years through the opening of new stores.
The number of stores in England, Scotland and Wales today totals 120 and its separate Northern Ireland arm operates seven stores and that company has yet to file its 2023 accounts.
The size of the overall business across the UK, Ireland and Europe has increased sharply in recent years with the expansion into France following the acquisition of PicWic Toys in France in July 2022.
Last year, Smyths Toys expanded its presence in France with the opening of four new stores to bring to 45 stores there and it also operates four stores in Holland.
The firm’s German business has also expanded with the opening of two new stores bringing the total to 72.
The company also has a presence in Austria and Switzerland.
The business is operated by the Smyth family from Co Mayo
Staff costs at Smyths Toys UK last year increased by 17% from £57.85m to £67.65m.
The profits take account of non-cash depreciation costs of £15.86m.
The company’s lease costs totalled £34.55m. The company recorded a post tax profit of £13.36m following a corporation tax charge of £5m.
After the dividend payout offset by the post tax profit, shareholder funds at the end of December last totalled £17.08m that included accumulated profits of £14m.
The firm’s cash funds increased from £17m to £18.5m.
Reporting by Gordon Deegan
