Travel agency Dawson & Sanderson has returned to profit following a restructuring that made changes to its boardroom and senior management team.
The independent Newcastle-based operator said it was in a strong position to take advantage of opportunities in the holidays market as it reported a substantial 68% increase in turnover to £10.58m in the year to the end of February, compared with £6.26m in the 16 months to the end of February 2022. New accounts show that boost was converted to an operating profit of £2.15m, up from an operating loss of £2.47m in the previous period.
Bosses say the firm has worked hard to rebuild confidence among customers in a post-Covid market. In the documents, signed by founder Tom Dawson, who is now 90, the firm said Covid had not only impacted sales but also its customers, footfall to branches, its online presence and expectations around the services on offer.
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Auditors for the firm said Dawson & Sanderson's accounting system was unable to give them detailed information about creditor sums of £5.4m reported in the accounts, and a breakdown of the company's trade creditors position at the end of February 2022. Barrons Limited said the lack of information meant it was unable to say whether any adjustment was necessary.
Dawson & Sanderson said the issue was a result of its change in financial year end from August 2021 to February 2022, and that the balances are now fully cleared but had remained at the time of year-end cut-off.
Last year the family-owned firm, which operates 21 branches across the North, announced a restructuring of its operations following a difficult period in which former auditors Greaves Grindle resigned after it emerged the travel specialist’s accounts for the year to the end of August 2020 had been filed without having been audited. In January, Northumbria Police confirmed there was an ongoing investigation after concerns of a financial nature were raised by the company.
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Writing in the accounts, Mr Dawson said: "A full restructure of our business was carried out in 2022 which sees the third generation of the Dawson family stepping up to director level, with new markets and leadership roles recruited in 2023. There has been an internal focus to revise the systems and process in order to move the business to new platforms which will improve internal efficiencies and a stable platform to drive future growth. This has allowed us not only to respond to these customer needs but also expand our operations building upon Dawson & Sanderson's established core values.
"A revision of its delegates of authority and internal control processes are now being implemented allowing the company to expand internal KPIs and move forward with its long term business plan. All of these changes have left Dawson & Sanderson in a strong position to take advantage of future opportunities."
Following publication of the accounts, a spokesperson told BusinessLive: "We are delighted to see our customers return in a post-Covid environment. With the increased desire to travel and the business restructure Dawson and Sanderson is positioned well for an exciting future ahead.”