Dowds Group to expand after return to profit

Dowds Group has reported a return to profitability as the business declares its largest year for revenue since it began trading. 

Turnover for the year ended 31 March 2024 was £72.7 million, up 33.8 per cent from £54.3 million in the previous financial period, generating a pre-tax profit of nearly £1.5 million (FY2023: £2.8 million loss) and a gross margin of 7.68 per cent.     

Growth was largely driven by the company’s Building Services business which landed several large projects in Northern Ireland as well as the rest of the UK, and via Dowds’ joint venture activities in the commercial fit-out sector whose turnover rocketed by 180 per cent.    

Dowds started the financial year with a confirmed pipeline and order book for the next 18 months and line of sight “into 2026 and beyond”.  

It added it is investing in its Energy Services division as it expects high growth in the next few years following sales more than doubling in the last 12 months and that it will continue to expand into the fit-out sector.  

The Ballymena–headquartered business generated an operating profit this year of £1.5 million, from a £2.8 million loss in the prior financial year.        

While net assets and total equity were valued at £6.3 million, up from £4.8 million in the year before, with cash reserves of nearly £6.6 million, up from £2 million in FY2023.    

Profit for the year was £1.6 million (FY2023: £2.6 million loss). 

“The improvement in performance was enabled by increasing operational efficiencies, focusing on an enhanced end-to-end supply chain, and utilising inflation clauses to mitigate cost increases,” said Dowds. 

“These results show a return to steady state growth and profitability for the company after previous years where results were constrained by Covid, war in Europe, inflationary pressures, and high interest rate.” 

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