George Pragnell Ltd, the trading name of luxury jeweller Pragnell, saw sales rise by 18% in a transition year during which the company’s store in Rugby closed but a boutique stocking Rolex and Patek Philippe opened in London’s Mayfair.
The addition of the Mayfair showroom in November 2017 is likely to have been a significant contributor to surging overseas sales for the group. For the first time, overseas sales exceeded domestic business.
Group turnover rose to £43.3 million, of which £23 million was from overseas business and £20 million was from domestic customers.
Operating profit dropped by one-third in the year ended May 21, 2018. Charlie Pragnell, managing director for Pragnell, says sale of stock at lower margins from the Rugby store that closed in May last year coupled with the cost of opening in Mayfair were responsible for the dip in profits.
“Adding back the exceptional costs of £1,324,195 to profit before tax would give a result of £3,976,428 for the group for 2018 which is a comparable result to profit before tax in 2017 of £3,946,568,” Mr Pragnell adds.
Since the end of the 2018 financial year in May, Pragnell has rebranded the Tarratt stores that it owns so the showroom on Market Street in Leicester has now become a third national outlet of Pragnell, joining the original Stratford Upon Avon store, which is currently being expanded into a neighbouring retail unit, and the boutique on Mount Street in London’s Mayfair that opened in Q4 last year.
In a trading update for the six months since the end of the 2018 financial year, Mr Pragnell tells WatchPro that: “Halfway through our current financial year the company is performing as forecast.”
