Irish retailer Brown Thomas enjoys 60 percent jump in profits

“Our business is only about level with last year. But it’s all to play for in the run-up to Christmas,” summed up Stephen Sealey, managing director of Brown Thomas, the results of the company.

The upscale Irish fashion retailer enjoyed a strong fiscal year 2015, with sales rising by 11 percent and underlying profit increasing by more than 60 percent, as reported by the ‘Irish Times’.

Speaking to Irish paper, Brown Thomas managing director Stephen Sealey said the strong performance was the result of tight cost control, a 34 million euros investment over the past three years in the business, and strong growth in online sales.

According to the latest accounts filed by Brown Thomas & Co Ltd, the retailer achieved turnover of 172.5 million euros in 2015, well ahead the previous year’s 155.4 million euros.

Profit after tax rose to 15.6 million euros, boosted by sales at its flagship Grafton Street store, which rose by 15 percent while online revenues increased by 134 percent. To date, online accounts for about 1.5 percent of total sales but this rises to 8 percent for beauty products.