The Pebble Group, parent company of Facilisgroup and Brand Addition (asi/202515), increased revenue 16% year over year in 2022 to £134 million – about $165 million, financial information released this week from the firm shows.

Headquartered in the United Kingdom with significant operations in the United States, The Pebble Group is publicly traded in the U.K. and reports its financial performance in British pounds.

“Our year-on-year revenues were up through growth at both Brand Addition and Facilisgroup,” Chris Lee, CEO of The Pebble Group, told ASI Media. “In both businesses, growth stems from high customer retention rates and attracting quality new customers. This growth is allowing continued investment into technology, creativity and ESG to underpin future success.”

Brand Addition’s Sales, Up 15%, Account for Most of the Revenue

Brand Addition, a U.K.-headquartered promotional products distributor, generated total global 2022 sales of £117.4 million – a 15% increase from the prior year. In U.S. dollars, the performance translated to revenue of about $145 million, Lee said. Brand Addition did about $35 million in sales in the United States, he noted. The distributorship’s heaviest concentration in sales was in Europe –  the United Kingdom and the continent combined.

Richard Law, chair of The Pebble Group, noted in a financial report that Brand Addition focuses on winning, growing and retaining seven-figure international contracts with top brands.

“During the year under review, Brand Addition increased its revenues through expanding and renewing its business with existing key clients, implementing new contracts won in 2021 and 2022, as well as winning a number of new contracts in the year, which will benefit 2023,” Law noted.

Facilisgroup’s Revenue Rises 31%

Headquartered in St. Louis, MO, Facilisgroup is a software-as-a-service provider and partnering community for the promo industry. The business increased annual revenue in 2022 by 31% to £16.6 million – about $20 million, executives said.  Of that business, about £15.5 million (about $19 million) was annual recurring revenue, The Pebble Group reported.

Investments in employees, sales and marketing efforts to support partner retention, and bringing new and augmented technology to market enabled Facilisgroup to drive business, executives said.

Such initiatives are said to have helped Facilis increase the number of partners using its flagship sales and workflow/operations suite, Syncore. Last year, Facilisgroup also launched a new online store platform, Commercio. The number of users on the platform is growing, Lee said.

“(Our) growth is allowing continued investment into technology, creativity and ESG to underpin future success.” Chris Lee, CEO, on The Pebble Group’s overall performance

Notably, Facilisgroup announced the week of March 23, 2023, that Syncore and Commercio have been integrated, allowing distributors to efficiently process online and offline orders in one place, according to executives. Online orders now flow into Syncore’s order processing system automatically in real time. Previously, distributors had to manually re-key data from online stores into their order processing system, which was error-prone and slow.

Earnings Insight, 2023 Objectives & Listing Publicly in the U.S.

For the year, The Pebble Group generated an operating profit of about £10.22 million (roughly $12.7 million), a rise of nearly 4%. Profit-after-tax was about £7.61 million (roughly $9.4 million), also a 4% rise. Basic earnings per share were 4.55p (about $5.64) and diluted earnings per share were 4.54p ($5.63), up from 4.39p and 4.38p, respectively.

Brand Addition posted operating profit of £8 million (about $9.77 million), up almost 13% annually. Facilisgroup’s operating profit was nearly steady, slipping from £5.1 million in 2021 to £5 million (approximately $6.1 million). Facilisgroup’s operating profit being lower despite sales increasing was a result of what company President Ashley McCune, a member of Counselor’s Power 50 list of promo’s most influential people, described to ASI Media as robust investment in Syncore and Commercio.

4.2%
Percentage by which The Pebble Group’s profit-after-tax increased year over year in 2022.

For Facilisgroup, 2023 goals include continuing to develop Syncore to maintain what Lee described as “high partner retention levels and accelerate partner attraction.” Lee said other objectives are to make progress in establishing Commercio as a market-leading product in e-commerce for the promotional products industry in North America.

At Brand Addition, goals include retaining key client contracts and successfully executing on contracts won in 2022, establishing new contracts with major international brands, and maintaining gross margins at the company’s long-term target of 30%.

Meanwhile, The Pebble Group is applying for its existing ordinary share capital to be traded in the United States on the OTC Market’s OTCQX trading platform. “This will provide all stakeholders in the United States with access to trade in the company’s ordinary shares, in (U.S. dollars), during U.S. market hours,” Law said. The Pebble Group is not seeking a fundraising in conjunction with the process.

“The new financial year has started well and in line with the Group’s expectations,” Law said. “Our significant investments in 2022 provide the opportunity for further growth during 2023 and we look forward to the year ahead with confidence.”