Premier Foods braces for Mr Kipling trial in US as revenue growth beats expectations

Premier Foods Tuesday reported strong revenue and profit growth for the half year ended 2 October, mainly driven by the continued success of the branded growth model.

The company behind the brands like Mr Kipling, Sharwood’s and Bisto has seen the H1 branded revenue up 11.4 per cent when compared to 2019, reflecting the strength of group’s branded growth model.

The second quarter was particularly strong, with revenue growth of 8.5 per cent vs two years ago.

“Our brands have performed especially well and increased market share in both Grocery and Sweet Treats, illustrating the continued success of our branded growth model,” commented Alex Whitehouse, chief executive.

“I am particularly pleased with how well the business is successfully navigating the widely reported industry wide challenges including logistics, labour shortages and input cost inflation to deliver such a strong set of results, which again underlines the robustness of our operating capabilities.”

The group is set to roll out new products and develop overseas businesses in the second half, including a trial of Mr Kipling in the US, he added.

“As we look ahead to the second half of the year, we will be launching a range of insight driven new products and supporting six of our key brands with advertising,” he said. “We will also continue to develop our overseas businesses including the full rollout of Mr Kipling in Canada and the test launch of Mr Kipling in the USA.

The group also looks to expand the presence in adjacent new categories, building on the initial success of Cape Herb and Spice and Oxo Rubs & Marinades, as well as bringing to market premium Mr Kipling biscuits and a range of branded Ice cream.

Trading profit was 13.1 per cent ahead from 2019 and the group reported adjusted profit before tax of £46.4m, up 46.3 per cent due to trading performance and significant interest cost savings.

With first half revenue ahead of guidance, Whitehouse said the group is firmly on track to deliver full year expectations.

“We enter the second half of the year with strong momentum, and with a series of exciting plans in place for our brands, we remain firmly on track to deliver on our profit expectations for the full year,” he said.