Printing.com plc
03 August 2007
FOR RELEASE 11.00AM 3 August 2007
PRINTING.COM PLC
('Printing.com' or 'the Company')
AGM Statement
George Hardie, the Chairman of Printing.com, will make the following comments on
current trading at the Annual General Meeting to be held at 11.00am in
Manchester today.
Current Trading
Sales volumes for the first four months of the current year have proved broadly
in line with the Company's internal budget.
Encouragingly, and in line with objectives set out when reporting the
Preliminary Results, a marked increase in the number of Bolt-on Franchises
granted has been recorded - a trend that we believe will continue.
The Company's 'Websites by Printing.com' initiative continues to gain momentum,
with the most successful Franchisee now having completed over ten websites in a
little over four months. Whilst this metric pertains to a pre-eminent
Franchisee, we believe it validates the appeal of the 'Websites by Printing.com'
offering and the market potential.
International Development
The Company's first Master Licence partner in New Zealand continues to
successfully exploit the Printing.com system. In Australia, discussions are
ongoing pursuant to the previously granted Option. However, the US discussions
have not progressed - we continue to explore other options and believe that an
appropriate partner will be secured. The launch of the Company's previously
reported second Master Licence is now scheduled for September 2007.
Printing.com France remains on course for an imminent launch. The initiative is
centred on the granting of Bolt-on Franchises and the shipping of product from
the Company's Manchester Hub to further exploit current unutilized capacity.
Outlook
In the current fiscal year, the first half represents an important phase in the
launch of key initiatives such as 'Websites by Printing.com', Printing.com
France and the final stages of bedding down the Hub upgrade. These initiatives,
together with the change in the reporting of the first half results (26 weeks
versus the previous 28) will result in a greater emphasis on second half
earnings compared to previous years.
Whilst we hoped to have made more progress in the US, we are encouraged by the
progress in the other aspects of Printing.com's development - particularly the
acceleration of the granting of Bolt-on Franchises. This remains the basis for
the Board's continued optimism about the future prospects of the Company.
For further information:
Printing.com plc
Tony Rafferty (Chief Executive) 07966 517 336
Alan Roberts (Finance Director) 0161 848 5713
Cubitt Consulting
Brian Coleman-Smith / Leanne Denman / James Verstringhe 020 7367 5100
Nominated Adviser
Brewin Dolphin Investment Banking
Richard Evans 0845 270 8602
This information is provided by RNS
The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
*A Private Investor is a recipient of the information who meets all of the conditions set out below, the recipient:
Obtains access to the information in a personal capacity;
Is not required to be regulated or supervised by a body concerned with the regulation or supervision of investment or financial services;
Is not currently registered or qualified as a professional securities trader or investment adviser with any national or state exchange, regulatory authority, professional association or recognised professional body;
Does not currently act in any capacity as an investment adviser, whether or not they have at some time been qualified to do so;
Uses the information solely in relation to the management of their personal funds and not as a trader to the public or for the investment of corporate funds;
Does not distribute, republish or otherwise provide any information or derived works to any third party in any manner or use or process information or derived works for any commercial purposes.
Please note, this site uses cookies. Some of the cookies are essential for parts of the site to operate and have already been set. You may delete and block all cookies from this site, but if you do, parts of the site may not work. To find out more about the cookies used on Investegate and how you can manage them, see our Privacy and Cookie Policy
To continue using Investegate, please confirm that you are a private investor as well as agreeing to our Privacy and Cookie Policy & Terms.