Regenersis' TRS acquisition helps revenues to rise by 16%

Published on Wednesday 10 March 2010 20:32

A RISING demand for repairs to mobile phones and other electronic gadgets in Scotland is driving strong sales growth at Regenersis, the Aim-listed firm said yesterday.

The company, which bought tycoon Richard Emanuel's Inchinnan-based Total Repair Solutions (TRS) last August in a 6.25 million deal, reported revenues up by 16 per cent, to 57m, in the six months to December.

The figure included a 7.8m contribution from TRS in its first four months as part of the group. Revenue from TRS in that period was 3 per cent higher than the equivalent in 2008 on volumes that increased 17 per cent. Headline operating profit for the business increased by 200,000.

Oxford-based Regenersis is now thought to be Scotland's second largest electronics employer with around 1,100 staff between its Inchinnan site and at Glenrothes where it repairs laptops, set-top boxes, iPods and satellite navigation systems.

Despite concerns about job losses at TRS at the time of the acquisition, Regenersis chief executive Gary Stokes told The Scotsman there had been no reduction in headcount.

"We saw the acquisition of TRS as a key step in the development of our business internationally and the management at Inchinnan are now leading our European mobile repair operations," Stokes said.

The local management team, including TRS chief executive Sergio Tansini, remained in place following the deal and more work has transferred to the site following the closure of one of the company's facilities in Nottingham.

Regenersis said TRS, which has been rebranded Regenersis Glasgow and employs 600 people, had performed in line with expectations since the acquisition. Recent contracts wins have included O2.

Headline operating profit at the group in the six months to 31 December increased 24 per cent to 2.7m from 2.2m in 2008 but pre-tax profits fell from 1.68m to 1.05m after restructuring costs and exceptional items.

On a like-for-like basis, overall repair and return volumes increased by 9 per cent, including a 19 per cent growth in the number of mobile phones serviced.