The results, released this morning, reveal revenue increased to £366.8m from £357.1m. Net fee income was up 6% from £69.4m to £72.3m, buoyed by strong profit growth from brands IMS in India, Alternattiva in Chile, LMA in the UK, ConSol Partners in both the UK and the US, and Rishworth in New Zealand. 

Across the group’s regions of operation, UK revenue was down 1% but NFI was up 1%. In Continental Europe, revenue was down 3% along with NFI by 5%. In Asia Pacific, revenue was up 3%, along with NFI by 10% and in the Americas, revenue grew 25%, with NFI up 22% year-on-year.

Elaborating on the group's performance, CEO Spencer Wreford said: “We are pleased to be reporting a fourth consecutive year of record adjusted profit before tax. We have also reduced the net debt in the group which, combined with the strength of our balance sheet and the board’s confidence in the group’s prospects, has allowed us to increase our annual dividend by 52%.

“In line with our strategy we continue to invest in the group, with a new brand in Peru joining in July 2018, as we strengthen our presence in the high potential Latin American market. 

“We have also invested in our central team, to provide more support to the growth plans of our brands, with a new chief operating officer, Rhona Driggs, and group finance director, Tim Anderson, joining the board, as well as new staff with responsibilities for technology, training and marketing. With a strong platform in place, these investments will help us to be more focused in our approach and work more closely with our brands to fully deliver the benefits of being in a group and to deliver the next phase of growth.”

He continued, saying Empresaria’s focus for the year was to “deliver organic growth and strengthen our core brands”, but added “we remain mindful of the increasing economic uncertainty arising from political risks”.

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