Brewery Timothy Taylor said its profit is “significantly down” despite its sales increasing as the business battles with “soaring utility costs” and rising wages.
The West Yorkshire-based company, which is behind beers including Landlord and Boltmaker, took a £1m hit to its bottom line in the 12 months ending September 30, 2023, as its pre-tax profit fell from £3.3m to £2.2m.
This dip was despite an increase in revenue to £32.9m – up nine per cent on the year before – as the brand said demands for its draught beer were up across the board.
But Timothy Taylor said this increase in sales was offset by ballooning costs and a “challenged British economy”.
In a business review published to Companies House, the brewer said: “Due to the impacts of soaring utility costs resulting from the war in Ukraine, high rates of general inflation and significant increases in labour costs, our operating profits were 47 per cent down on the prior year at £1.72m (£3.24m previously).
“After recovering well from the impact of Covid-19, the company and broader pub sector continue to be faced with inflated utility prices, significant input and labour cost increases, and the prospect of the return of full business rates for the on-trade.
“All of this in the context of a challenges British economy and consumer, and the need for us to recover cost price increases from our customers offset the reduced profitability; a necessity if we are to be able to continue to invest in the brewery and our high-quality beer brands.”
The company said despite the challenging financial climate it had continued to invest in sales and marketing support and new plant machinery to improve operations at its Keighley brewery.
It also opened a new “brewery tap” venue, Taylor’s on the Green, next door to its brew house.