Macfarlane (MACF,), a packaging and labeling services company, released a trading update today covering 2023 to date, with Q1 2023 sales and profits ahead of the same period in 2022.
Packaging Distribution sales grew by 4%, benefiting from the PackMann acquisition in May 2022 and new business growth, but were offset by weak e-commerce retail demand.
Manufacturing Operations sales grew by 14% due to the recovery of certain industrial markets and the acquisition of A.E. Sutton Limited in March 2023.
So far, Macfarlane has completed two acquisitions in 2023, including Gottlieb Packaging Materials in Manchester.
Net bank debt at the end of Q1 2023 was £0.1m, improving from £3.4m at the end of 2022.
Aleen Gulvanessian, chair of the board, commented: "The growth in both sales and profits that we have achieved in the first quarter of 2023 continues to demonstrate the effectiveness of our strategy, the quality of our people and the resilience of our business model."
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Macfarlane's strategic focus on achieving organic growth and complementing it with smart acquisitions has yielded positive results in 2023.
Despite external headwinds, namely weakened demand from the e-commerce retail sector, the company has managed to grow sales in both its divisions so far this year. This comes as little surprise, considering the impressive momentum that Macfarlane built in 2022, with its manufacturing operations division experiencing a 23% increase in revenues, while its packaging distribution division saw an 8% boost in revenue growth.
In addition, Macfarlane is well-placed to simplify packaging supply chains for its customers, particularly as companies operating throughout Europe are dealing with many variables that can lead to high levels of administration time and increase costs.
These include navigating packaging taxation, with the EU implementing a plastic tax levy in 2021, alongside multi-currency trading, both of which can drive up unnecessary costs. Macfarlane offers a neat solution to these factors, with its packaging division supporting customers with European operations through its distribution service and e-trading portal.
As Macfarlane maintains its impressive momentum across all divisions, with market expectations for the year remaining unchanged, make sure to Follow Macfarlane for more News and Updates .