Royal boost for ceramics group

Portmeirion is one of a number of firms benefiting from the sale of memorabilia ahead of next month’s wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton but analysts at Seymour Pierce said the strong results were “not just a flash in the pan”.

The company, whose products include Royal Worcester bone china and Spode Blue Italian earthenware, said it had got off to a good start in 2011, with sales in the first two months of the year up 15 per cent compared with the same period in 2010, helped by the launch of more than 250 new products so far.

Portmeirion’s websites showed a number of items from its Royal Wedding collection, including a £40 tea cup and saucer finished in 22 carat gold, were currently out of stock. “The outlook for the remainder of 2011 is positive,” said the company.

For the year ended December 31, underlying pretax profit jumped 41.2 per cent to £5.2m on revenues 19 per cent higher at £51m.

Revenue growth of 9.2 per cent in the United States – the group’s largest market – and 6.2 per cent in South Korea offset weaker sales in the UK, which fell 3.7 per cent.

Seymour Pierce pointed to the strength of its “iconic patterns” and potential for growth in Russian, Chinese and Australian markets. The board proposed a final dividend of 13.5p, bringing the full-year payout to 17.40p – 10 per cent more than in 2009.