New accounts show that profits at Darina Allen’s Ballymaloe Cookery School increased to €2.7 million last year.
According to the Irish Independent, the Co. Cork-based cookery school posted profits of €62,134 in the 12 months ending August 2018.
The company employs 60 staff, with total staff costs amounting to €1.97 million last year.
Difficult Years
Toby Allen, general manager of the school and son of the company’s founder Darina, said that the company has managed to fight through a difficult time.
“After a number of difficult years where we had some one-off expenses that we needed to absorb, thankfully last year was more upbeat and we once again showed a small profit,” he said.
“This year has again been challenging with Brexit causing uncertainty that has had an effect on our Irish and British students.”
The school’s ‘best seller’ is its 12-week certificate course, which costs €12,595 per person and runs three times a year.
Allen said that while it is currently experiencing a bump on the road, it looks set for growth moving forward.
"Our current 12-week course is a little under-subscribed - about 5pc down - but still shows the international character of our students with 14 nationalities present,” Allen explained.
“Our next 12-week course in September is on course to be fully subscribed and we have tackled the uncertainty caused by Brexit by increasing our advertising and social media exposure,” he said.
© 2019 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Aidan O’Sullivan. Click sign-up to subscribe to Checkout.
