North East haulage and warehousing firm Fergusons Transport says it is confident it can ride out the challenges of the pandemic, despite seeing turnover fall last year.
Launched by the family in 1926 and based at Northumberland Business Park West, in Cramlington, the company is the largest privately owned haulier in the North East. As well as transport it also work in warehousing, logistics, removals and self-storage.
It operates from several locations around the 海角视频, with depots at Washington and Plymouth and eight warehouses around the country.
The Cramlington based business, one of several in the region owned and operated by the Ferguson family, has now published accounts for the year ended September 30 2020, showing a 10% drop in turnover from 拢22.2m to 拢19.9m.
Operating profit also dropped, from 拢350,325 to 拢294,136, which directors said was very satisfactory, given it was such a 鈥渂adly interrupted鈥 trading year.
In a report accompanying the accounts, director Alan Ferguson said the financial year鈥檚 trading was heavily impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, affecting the two sides of the business to differing degrees.
Despite the impacts, he said in the accounts: 鈥淲hilst the efficient management of the business鈥檚 working capital remains a priority, the board is confident that the company can manage its way through these challenging events.鈥
The company, which has around 271 staff, furloughed most of its operational staff for 13 weeks at the staff of the outbreak, which also required office staff to work from home.
Mr Ferguson said in the report: 鈥淏y the end of June however, we were able to start to progress towards normality as our customers also started to resume the previously suspended activities.
鈥淭he haulage was particularly affected as this resulted in a number of our major customers closing down their operations and not requiring transport .
鈥淭urnover from this area of the business dropped to 拢15.46m from 2019鈥檚 拢17.88m, a fall of 14%. Business has gradually built back up since operations resumed at the end of the initial phase of lockdown.鈥
He said the cost-cutting and control measures took at that time enabled the firm to operate profitably, with the haulage division achieving a gross margin broadly in line with the previous year of 12.1%.
Meanwhile its warehousing activity was not affected in the same way, as there was increased demand for storage capacity which it could satisfy.
Reduced revenue from handling of goods during lockdown was more than compensated by additional storage charges and turnover increased by 1% 1.9% to 拢4.42m from 拢4.34m in 2019.
It added that the Cramlington workshop had a quieter period as third-party work ceased almost entirely, with many not active for three months.
Following publication of the accounts, Mr Ferguson heralded a raft of recent news in the North East as positive signs for the firm鈥檚 future, including Nissan鈥檚 chief operating officer's declaration last week that Brexit had given the region鈥檚 plant - on the doorstep of a Fergusons depot 鈥 a competitive advantage, Britishvolt selecting Blyth as its site for a giga-factory and a 拢34m government boost to reintroduce trains to parts of Northumberland.
He added: 鈥淭rading has been continuing strongly in this lockdown - better than it was in the first one 鈥 so things are keeping on and we are hopeful for the future.鈥
