DESPITE seeing its pre-tax profits fall by more than half last year, electronics company Stadium Group plans to spend £1.5m on its Hartlepool site and is hiring 30 extra staff.

In its preliminary results issued yesterday, the firm said its pre-tax profit in the year to the end of 2012 was £1.77m compared to £3.96m in 2011.

The firm is a specialist supplier of electronics and manufacturing services and has bases across the UK and China.

Revenues were also down from £44.94m to £40.99m, despite a one-off sale of the business’s property in Hong Kong, which brought in a standalone profit of £2.4m.

The company put this down to ongoing difficulties in market conditions in the last half of 2012.

However, the decision to close it Rugby facility and keep its Hartlepool facility open means Stadium will spend more money on operations in the North East as a result.

Chief executive Steve Phipson said the Hartlepool-headquartered company had achieved the objectives it set out in 2011, with the acquisition of IGT Industries in September, last year, and the consolidation of its operations in Asia to mainland China.

He said: “The sector we’re in fell back 25% across the UK as lots of competitors squabbled for business. Our market only fell by 11% so we were pleased with our performance overall.

“We decided to close our Rugby facility because we only needed one site in the UK going forward and our Hartlepool base is far more cost-effective. There are a lot more resources and it’s a bigger facility. It’s also a lot easier to recruit good engineering personnel in the North East.

“Because many of the workers at our Rugby facility understandably don’t want to relocate, we will be growing our workforce by 30 in the North East and employing locally. So far, we’ve hired 10 workers.

“We’ve already invested in the North East as we plan to take on more work. We need to make the site ready for machines that will be coming up from Rugby. This whole programme has cost £1.5m as a result of closing Rugby and investing in Hartlepool.”

Looking ahead, Stadium said after a tough trading year it was well positioned to compete effectively in its traditional iEMS markets and pursue new growth opportunities within its technology-led businesses and other possible acquisition opportunities.

Chairman Nick Brayshaw said: “Trading in the first few months of the year has been challenging given a continuation of the difficult market conditions experienced in the latter part of 2012.

“Going forward, our self-help programmes will deliver leaner business structures and improve operational efficiency, which will offset the impact of weak or zero growth.

“The board remains committed to the growth strategy of investing in technology led businesses where we can leverage our manufacturing know how and exploit cross-selling opportunities, and will continue to explore suitable opportunities to drive this strategy forward. Consequently, the board remains confident in its strategy for the future and the group’s prospects for the current year.”

Author: Lucas Anthony

If you own a business then your need for marketing is definitely perennial. You cannot do without publicizing what you do because of the cut throat competition and local markets reducing your business opportunities. Marketing increases your prospects and build your future customer base which in turn strengthens your business and market base. If your business has an internal business team then they have to come up with ideas every day. Owing to the business revolution these days, you cannot live without marketing and without it your business is sure going to dry up soon.

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Freelance Writing From Home Offers Many A Job Opportunity

Perhaps you’re a stay at home mom looking to make some extra money to help the family budget out or maybe you’re disabled and looking for something to do with your time. With either of these scenarios, becoming a freelance writer could be the answer to your boredom, money issues and an outlet for your creativity.

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If you think you have what it takes to write content for websites and don’t mind having other people get the credit for what you write, becoming a freelance writer might be the new job for you.

How to Start an Online Business-Simple steps You Must Take

The economy is in bad shape right now. Although certain states do manage to maintain a low unemployment rate, a great deal of the country cannot say the same. If you are unemployed or are concerned that you may lose your job at any time, you may wish to learn how to start an online business. When you open a business of this type, you can start small and expand over time or keep it small as a second income. There are certain steps that should be followed to give you a better chance of success with your new endeavor. Here is what you should do to launch the business of your dreams.

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Affordable Phone System for Business

Business is a sort of interesting game just like life where we plan out several strategies. One such great strategy that is common to all business types would be the cost-cutting technique. Not only business almost all types of industries strive to make the desired level of reach by cutting their extra costs. In particular, when it comes to business, almost all business associates try to cut down their costs by implementing a special kind of strategy that will help them to survive in the industry. The cost-cutting strategy plays a vital role during the tough times of business.

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