CMJ sales break £100m barrier for the first time

The Company of Master Jewellers (CMJ) has reported sales of just under £113m, breaking through the £100m mark for the first time in its history. Unveiling the results at the group’s annual general meeting in Birmingham, director Andrew Hirshman said group sales rose from £88.1m in 2012/13 to just shy of £113m, a rise of 28%. CMJ’s gross profit has also risen from £1.74m to £2.04m, an increase of 17%. Speaking to the CMJ members, Hirshman said: “This is the first time we have broken through the £100m barrier, a remarkable achievement and congratulations to all the members for your contribution to this fantastic result. “This is a wonderful platform for the next phase of our growth and development as the leading jewellery cooperative buying group in the UK. Exciting times are indeed ahead of us and we the board of directors, in conjunction with our dedicated executive team, are certainly looking forward to what lies ahead for the CMJ.” Tracking sales growth in line with the industry statistical categories, the fashion jewellery category showed an increase of over 30%, while the precious jewellery category dropped 10% and the watch category grew by almost 20% in sales through CMJ. CMJ chief executive, Willie Hamilton, said that the trend within CMJ throughput reflects market analysts’ predictions that branded fashion lines would continue to grow, while precious jewellery would decline. Hamilton said: “However, the encouraging sales trends within CMJ show that the sub-category of bridal jewellery is still the largest part of our core precious jewellery sales. “We do forecast this area to grow once again as the economy continues to recover, as consumer confidence continues to return and as our members start to refocus back on this critical side of their business.” Hirshman added: “Another point of interest and one that is encouraging is that 57% of CMJ members spend this financial year was ahead of their corresponding spend last year. This is up from 52% of the members in the previous year. “This bodes well for the year ahead and further adds to the arguments that there is economic light at the end of the tunnel.” CMJ also revealed that the number of invoices process via its head office in Rugby stood at 130,000 for the full-year, compared to 75,000 for the 2009/2010 financial year.