CHANNEL SORE
Channel 4 reports biggest loss ever and calls for upcoming Budget to restore business confidence
Channel 4 blamed a near ten per cent slump in advertising revenues, plus piling cash into content
CHANNEL 4 yesterday reported its biggest loss ever — and called for this month’s Budget to restore business confidence.
Boss Alex Mahon said: “That’s what advertisers need, that’s what consumers want, that’s what we want.”
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And she insisted that would help more than government assistance in its ownership, as briefly flirted with by the last administration.
The Great British Bake Off broadcaster fell to a deficit of £52million last year, compared to a £3million surplus the year before.
Overall revenues edged ten per cent lower to £1billion.
It blamed a near ten per cent slump in advertising revenues, plus piling cash into content.
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It said the ad slump caught the entire market unaware — “even the highly paid forecasters”.
The publicly owned but commercially funded channel, which also screens Married At First Sight and The Piano, spent £663million on programming, its second-highest annual figure.
Bosses admitted they had hoped to spend even more, but the ads downturn meant budgets had to quickly be trimmed.
Ms Mahon said of the spend: “We did it knowing the single biggest contribution we can make to the financial health of the creative economy is what we spend on British intellectual property.”
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She reasserted the importance of the Government maintaining tax credits for film and drama productions.
Channel 4’s results showed consuming video content will overtake traditional linear TV.
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Streaming now makes up 15 per cent of its viewing after growing by a quarter last year.
It has been investing heavily in its digital partnerships, including YouTube which also streamed its Paralympics coverage.
The advertising slowdown meant Channel 4 has already tightened its belt by cutting around 240 jobs and shelving shows including Banged Up and Scared of the Dark, despite good ratings.
It will quit its London HQ on Horseferry Road, due to hybrid working.
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Sum mistake for Vistry with £1bn hit
MORE than £1billion was wiped off the value of housebuilder Vistry Group yesterday after it admitted that it had got its maths wrong.
The FTSE 100 group, formerly called Bovis Homes, put out an unscheduled update revealing that it had underestimated building costs on around nine of its 300 developments.
Vistry said the blooper would knock £80million off its profits and it will now make around £350million — below last year’s £419million.
Shares in the housebuilder tumbled by as much as a third as investors took fright at the error.
Investec analyst Aynsley Lammin said the key question for the City to consider going forward would be whether this was a one-off error or “more systemic and reflective of inherent risk within the group’s model”.
The business said it believed the issues were “confined to the south division” and it was starting a review to get to the root of the cause.
Vistry has been growing at a faster pace than all of its large competitors and recently upped its forecasts for house completions, despite others blaming higher mortgage rates for lower demand.
Boom in sarnies
BRITAIN’S biggest sandwich maker Greencore has boosted its profit forecasts for the year after a rise in sales.
Like-for-like sales were up by 3.7 per cent in the past quarter, the firm reported.
Workers returning to offices pushed up demand for its sandwiches, sushi and salads that it makes on behalf of supermarkets and retailers.
Greencore said it expects to make around £95million of profits this year, compared to £76million last year.
Shining results at Shein
FAST-fashion retailer Shein made £1.5billion in UK sales last year — more than its British online rivals Boohoo and Asos.
Young shoppers have snapped up its cheap goods.
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And fresh company accounts for Shein Distribution UK Ltd reveal its revenues rose from £1.1billion for 2023.
Its growth eclipses the £1.4billion revenues Asos made in the UK and Boohoo’s £921.5million of UK sales.
As it gears up for a potential London stock market listing, Shein reported its UK profits doubled to £24.4million.
It is facing scrutiny for exploiting an import duty loophole by shipping goods in small parcels directly to consumers.
The China-founded group has recently shifted its headquarters to Singapore.
But its Companies House filings confirm the ultimate controlling firm is registered in Cayman Islands, a known tax haven.
IMP's cig boost
THE maker of Golden Virginia and Lambert & Butler is giving shareholders a £1.5billion award after benefiting from the rising prices of cigarettes.
Imperial Brands said it would increase the amount returned to investors in buybacks from £2.4billion to £2.8billion in the year ahead.
Imps still makes the bulk of its sales and profits from cigs but has been investing heavily in “next generation” products.
It expects sales of its Blu vapes and nicotine pouches to grow by between 20 and 30 per cent in the next year.
THE CAFE and bars chain Loungers has opened 17 new sites in the past six months and has plans for 18 more.
The business now has 273 in the UK and openings are fuelling its growth, with half year sales rising by 19 per cent to £178.3million.
Oxtail of woes
THE miserable weather in September had chilly shoppers stocking up on soup and hot chocolate, according to the latest grocery figures.
Hot chocolate sales rose 28 per cent and soup was up ten per cent at supermarkets, Kantar stats showed.
Brits are still spending more as food inflation ticked back up to 2 per cent, from 1.7 per cent in August.
They are buying more items on promotion.
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Of the discounters, Aldi's growth slowed to 1.8 per cent over the month.
Lidl's sales rose by 8.8 per cent.
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