Investment in technology and improving efficiencies is credited with helping boost profits for Glasgow-based food and drink wholesaler JW Filshill.
Picture By Martin Hunter
The firm posted pre-tax profit of £1.3 million for the year to January 31, 2015 – up from £0.8m the previous years.
Filshill, which marks its 140th anniversary this year, also predicted that a decline in sales in recent years will be reversed, with growth expected to return within the next three years.
While turnover for JW Filshill was down 4.4% for the year to £151m, the firm claims to have reduced costs by £400,000, and said this was partly the result of “ramping up” investment in IT systems.
Simon Hannah, managing director of JW Filshill, said ongoing investment in IT and electronic order capture “continues to add value to customers, suppliers and our business”.
“We continue to place emphasis on staff performance and measured incentives schemes and believe that the monitoring of non-financial KPIs, such as vehicle fuel performance, sales service levels/range achievements, unanswered telesales calls and returned orders is an effective part of our business performance review,” he said.
The lift in profits for JW Filshill came in a year which also saw the firm launch a new export division, JW Filshill International Ltd, which trades as The Craft Beer Clan of Scotland.
Hannah said the firm expects export sales will reach “satisfactory levels” by 2016 as interest in the business from Scottish producers grows.
