Adnams cautious in 2008

March 26, 2008: Although it has entered 2008 in a stronger position than ever, Adnams remains conscious of volatile economic environment, executive chairman Jonathan Adnams says in the company's annual report for 2007.

However, announcing pre-tax profits of £7.5 million, he adds: "We have adopted an ambitious strategic plan under which we aim to more than double our profits over a five-year period."

In a report entitled Preparing for the Future, Mr Adnams writes: "Trading conditions during 2007 were very difficult; the UK beer market was down
4%, whilst the UK wine market grew by approximately 3%.

"Our main trading market is the UK on-trade, where industry estimates showed a decline in beer volumes of nearly 6.5% and a decline in the wine
market of 4% for the year. Contributing factors were the poor summer weather and depressed consumer confidence in the autumn, following concerns over property prices and instability in financial markets.

"As expected, the smoking ban introduced in July has also contributed to the decline in beer consumption and we anticipate that this will continue to impact trading in the first half of 2008. These conditions also contributed to the continued shift in consumption of alcohol from out-of-home to in-home, with leading supermarkets taking a greater share of beer volumes."

The full report can be viewed at the Adnams website (you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader).