REG - Ultimate Products - Pre-Close Trading Update and AIM Listing Review

Ultimate ProductsAnnouncement

Wed 07:00

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RNS Number : 0695V  Ultimate Products PLC  13 August 2025

13 August 2025

Ultimate Products plc

"Ultimate Products", "the Company" or "the Group"

 

PRE-CLOSE TRADING UPDATE AND AIM LISTING REVIEW

FY25 in line with expectations; continued investment in operational
improvements

 

Ultimate Products, the owner of a number of leading homeware brands including
Salter (the UK's oldest houseware brand, est.1760) and Beldray (est.1872),
announces its trading update for the financial year ended 31 July 2025
("FY25", or "the period").

 

Overview

                                         FY25         FY24        Change  Change
                                        £m           £m           £m      %
 UP brands                                121.9        116.9      5.1     4.3%
 Licensed brand**                           14.4         12.1     2.3     19.2%
 Third party clearance & own label          13.8         26.6     (12.7)  -48.0%
 Total                                    150.1        155.5      (5.4)   -3.4%

 

Unaudited Group revenues were £150.1m, down 3.4% (FY24: £155.5m), reflecting
subdued consumer demand for general merchandise. Third-party clearance &
own label sales, which grew strongly during FY24 as suppliers dealt with their
overstocks, declined by 48% to £13.8m in the period. However, sales of our UP
brands rose by 4.3% to £121.9m.

 

In line with revised market expectations, unaudited adjusted EBITDA* was
£12.5m, down 31%, impacted by an additional £3.1m of freight costs.
Operating costs remained stable at £22.3m (FY24: £22.4m).

 

At the year end, the Group had net bank debt of £14.1m (FY24: £10.4m), which
represents a net bank debt/ adjusted EBITDA ratio of 1.1x (FY24: 0.6x),
marginally above the Group's targeted policy of 1.0x. The rolling 12-month
average was 1.3x.

 

Current trading

Trading at the start of the current financial year is in line with market
expectations.

 

Consideration of AIM listing

The Board is reviewing whether it would be in shareholders' best interests to
change the Company's listing venue from the London Stock Exchange's Official
List and Main Market to AIM, considering factors such as the potential to
access new investors at the Company's current market capitalisation. Further
updates will be announced as appropriate.

 

 Commenting on the performance, Andrew Gossage, Chief Executive of Ultimate
Products, said:

"We continue to operate in a challenging environment, with many consumers
prioritising saving over spending. Although overall revenue declined, we are
encouraged by the growth in sales of our UP brands, which remain a key
differentiator and the driver of long-term value creation, both in the UK and
internationally. We are confident that further investment and operational
improvements within our business will better position us to take advantage of
all commercial opportunities, win market share and deliver sustainable
long-term growth."

 

*Adjusted measures are stated before share-based payment expense and
non-recurring items

Financial summary, including consensus market expectations immediately prior
to this announcement

 

                  FY24 (Actual)  FY25 (Consensus)  FY26 (Consensus)
 Revenue          £155.5m        £149.2m           £137.7m
 Adjusted EBITDA  £18.0m         £12.5m            £9.9m
 Adjusted EPS     12.3p          7.6p              5.2p

 

For more information, please contact:

 

Ultimate Products +44 (0) 161 627 1400

Andrew Gossage, CEO

Chris Dent, CFO

 

Shore Capital +44 (0) 20 7408 4090

Malachy McEntyre/ Isobel Jones (Corporate Broking)

Mark Percy/ David Coaten/ Harry Davies-Ball (Corporate Advisory)

 

Cavendish Capital Markets Limited + 44 (0)20 7220 0500

Matt Goode/ Callum Davidson/ Trisyia Jamaludin (Corporate Finance)

Matt Lewis (Corporate Broking)

 

Sodali & Co +44 (0) 207 250 1446

Rob Greening/ Sam Austrums/ Oliver Banks

 

 

 Notes to Editors

Ultimate Products is the owner of a number of leading homeware brands
including Salter (the UK's oldest houseware brand, established in 1760) and
Beldray (a laundry, floor care, heating and cooling brand that was established
in 1872). According to its market research, nearly 80% of UK households own at
least one of the Group's products.

 

Ultimate Products sells to over 300 retailers across 38 countries, and
specialises in five product categories: Small Domestic Appliances; Housewares;
Laundry; Audio; and Heating and Cooling. Other brands include Progress
(cookware and bakeware), Kleeneze (laundry and floorcare), Petra (small
domestic appliances) and Intempo (audio).

 

The Group's products are sold to a broad cross-section of both large national
and international multi-channel retailers as well as smaller national retail
chains, incorporating discount retailers, supermarkets, general retailers and
online retailers.

 

Founded in 1997, Ultimate Products employs over 370 staff, a significant
number of whom have joined via the Group's graduate development scheme, and is
headquartered in Oldham, Greater Manchester, where it has design, sales,
marketing, buying, quality assurance, support functions and warehouse
facilities across two sites. Manor Mill, the Group's head office, includes a
spectacular 20,000 sq ft showroom that showcases each of its brands. In
addition, the Group has an office and showroom in Guangzhou, China and in
Paris, France.

 

** Please note that Ultimate Products is not the owner of Russell Hobbs. The
company currently has licence agreements in place granting it an exclusive
licence to use the "Russell Hobbs" trademark for cookware and laundry (NB this
does not include Russell Hobbs electrical appliances).

 

For further information, please visit www.upplc.com (https://www.upplc.com/)
.

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