Norman Broadbent PLC enjoys positive underlying earnings in March and

On Jan 13, 2021

The coronavirus pandemic has led to some reduction in revenues but so far these have been offset by cost-cutting measures.

(), which in January announced it had returned to profit in 2019, said it has continued to see a healthy increase in net fee income during the current year.

Despite coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown measures affecting the group’s markets in March and April, the recruitment and executive search specialist said it recorded a 12% increase in net fee income (NFI) in the first four months of the year compared to the same period of 2019.

The group revealed that it saw strong contributions from its Senior Interim Management and Talent Solutions activities, which offset challenging general market conditions for its Board & Leadership Search offerings.

There was also interest in the group’s Research & Insight services as clients prepare and plan for the post-coronavirus era, the company added.

Furthermore, the investment made over recent years in digital marketing is continuing to impact results positively as the business is developed with new and existing clients. The pandemic has led to some reduction in revenues but so far these have been offset by cost-cutting measures.

The group has yet to publish results for 2019 owing to delays caused by the coronavirus pandemic but confirmed that its revenues rose by 22% to £11.5mln in 2019 from £9.4mln in 2019 while NFI jumped 15% to £7.6mln from £6.6mln.

The emphasis since the pandemic took hold in Britain has been on cash collection and the reduction of debtor days (how long customers take to pay); this, combined with positive underlying earnings (EBITDA) in March and April has helped to protect cash flow, the company said in its trading update.