Despite increases in sales and net income, executives for Top 40 promotional products distributor Cimpress (asi/162149) characterized the Netherlands-based company’s recently concluded fiscal 2019 as a disappointing and difficult year, with revenue at its flagship Vistaprint business increasing less than 1% and profitability declining in its National Pen segment.

In financial results announced late Thursday, Cimpress said that it doubled overall net income to nearly $93.5 million, or $3.00 per diluted share, compared to $1.36 per diluted share the prior year.

The parent company of web-based seller of print and promo materials Vistaprint, distributor National Pen and others, Cimpress said its full-year revenue rose 6% to $2.75 billion. Fourth quarter revenue was up 7% to $674.7 million. Net income for the final quarter tallied nearly $33.2 million, or $1.09 per diluted share, versus a loss of $5.6 million, or negative $0.24 per diluted share, in the prior year’s Q4.

Robert Keane, CEO, Cimpress

The year-on-year growth in net income occurred, in part, because Cimpress cut its Vistaprint advertising spending by $39.6 million, decreased share-based compensation expenses, lowered its spend on compensation to the board of directors by reducing the board’s size, and realized benefits from a change in tax provision and the non-recurrence of a $17.4 million loss on the early extinguishment of a debt.

For the year, Cimpress’ flagship Vistaprint division increased global revenue 0.68% to $1.47 billion. A Top 40 distributor before being acquired by Cimpress, National Pen’s global revenue rose 4.5% to $348.4 million, Cimpress reported.

Despite the company-wide gains in sales and income, Cimpress CEO Robert Keane characterized fiscal 2019 as “a turbulent and challenging” year – a reality highlighted by the company removing former Vistaprint CEO Trynka Shineman in January, with Keane assuming the role in addition to his duties as CEO of all of Cimpress.

According to Keane, overall company performance fell short of expectations – a fact that the CEO said was driven, in part, by weaker-than-hoped-for showings from Vistaprint and National Pen. Despite inching upward for the year, Vistaprint’s revenue was down about 1.5% in the fourth quarter compared to Q4 2018. National Pen’s segment profitability dropped by more than $12 million for the year, a partial consequence of increased investment in prospecting activities that didn’t bear desired results.

While acknowledging that revenue for National Pen is likely to be flat or in the low single digits in fiscal year 2020, Cimpress indicated that profitability should improve given course corrections it has implemented. It’s a similar story for Vistaprint: “We continue to expect flat to negative growth for Vistaprint for the foreseeable future because we will accept declining revenue growth in favor of improved returns on our advertising investment,” Cimpress said.

Still, a significant overhaul appears to be underway at Vistaprint that aims to make the business stronger in the long run. There’s a multi-year project to rebuild technology infrastructure, and Cimpress is recruiting “three high-caliber executives” who will join Vistaprint in the coming months – one as president of North American operations, another as president of international operations, and the third as chief marketing officer. Cimpress hasn’t yet revealed the executives’ names.

With estimated 2018 North American promotional products revenue of $450 million, Cimpress ranks fourth on Counselor’s latest list of the largest distributors in the industry.