Advertising group Maiden buoyed by record September
UK outdoor advertising group Maiden painted a brighter picture for its industry today after basking in narrower half-year losses and a record September.
The London-based company, which sells space on billboards and posters at roadsides and railway stations, said its performance had been in line with expectations after pre-tax losses came in at £200,000 (€294,000) for the six months to June 30, against a deficit of £1.9m (€2.8m) last time.
Although conditions remained challenging, Maiden said bookings in recent weeks had helped ensure a record September – building on the renewal of a major contract with Network Rail in July.
That deal ensured its presence at 17 major UK railway stations including Birmingham New Street, Edinburgh Waverley and Gatwick Airport, for a further 10 years. It covers 2,000 poster sites worth a potential £450m (€661.6m) in advertising revenues.
Maiden’s battle against the advertising downturn of the past two years saw it post annual losses of £100,000 (€147,000) in March – £1m (€1.5m) better than a year earlier.
The company said today: “The market dynamics for UK outdoor (advertising) continue to be very positive.”
It also said cost reduction strategies and its investment programme had contributed to the improvement.
During the half year, outdoor advertising continued to grow, with entertainment and media, motors and business products among the strongest categories.
Financial advertising recovered significantly in comparison with the same period last year, while the retail, pharmaceutical and drinks sectors all showed strong growth.
The group won new train advertising contracts with National Express and South Eastern Trains during the period.
Maiden said strong short-term bookings had helped deliver a record September, however, it said this had to be seen in the context of fluctuating sales.
Although July showed substantial gains on last year’s poor performance, August under-performed. The company said that overall third-quarter revenues were 6% higher than last year.
Turnover increased by 11% to £46m (€67.6m) in the first half and pre-tax profits before goodwill rose to £2.1m (€3m) from £1.2m (€1.8m) last time, reflecting its focus on cost savings.
The interim dividend was maintained at 2p.
