The Accounts · daily brief
27 September 2026
A Dorset hotel winds down, and Henry's margins shrink
The takeaways
- Christchurch Pavilion has filed on a break-up basis after selling off the Kings Harbour Hotel's trade
- Operating profit at Henry maker Numatic fell 19% to £20.3m alongside rising commodity and distribution costs
- GFT Financial reduced its headcount by nearly 40% as tier-one clients delayed major transformation work
Hiring signals · who grew, who shrank
Hiring
- Chevron Aircraft Maintenance Limited 85 → 123 staff ▲ +45% staff cost +58%
- Marqeta Uk Ltd 43 → 51 staff ▲ +19% staff cost +18%
Cutting
- Gft Financial Limited 235 → 144 staff ▼ −39% staff cost −24%
- F.H. Bertling Logistics Aberdeen Limited 79 → 68 staff ▼ −14% staff cost −1%
Average headcount from the accounts filed yesterday — a look back at last year's payroll, not a live hiring tracker.
Filing of note
Christchurch Pavilion Limited
Operating the Kings Harbour Hotel in Dorset, this entity provides accommodation services and is a subsidiary of Global Reach Hospitality Limited following a recent transfer of control from the Harbour Hotels Group.
Filed on a break-up (non-going-concern) basis.
| Line | FY25 | FY24 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | — | £1.7m | |
| Gross profit | — | £594k | |
| Admin expenses | £58,433 | £821k | ▼ −93% |
| Operating profit | −£58,433 | −£227k | ▲ +74% |
| Finance costs | — | £75,815 | |
| Profit before tax | −£58,433 | −£1.4m | ▲ +96% |
| Net profit | −£58,433 | −£1.4m | ▲ +96% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Cash | £11,999 | £72,527 | ▼ −83% |
| Net assets | −£1.1m | −£993k | ▼ −6% |
| People & pay | |||
| Avg. headcount | 0 | 38 | ▼ −100% |
A structural shift for the former operator of Dorset's Kings Harbour Hotel, which has adopted a break-up basis of accounting. Having sold off its trade and assets in the prior year, turnover has naturally dropped to nil. The filing confirms an intention to wind the company down entirely once remaining contractual liabilities are settled.
Morson Group Limited [1]
Operating primarily via morson.com, the entity is a private STEM recruitment, human resources, and engineering design group owned by MMGG Acquisition Limited, having previously operated as a public limited company under the name Morson Group plc.
Steady expansion
| Line | FY25 | FY24 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £1.5bn | £1.4bn | ▲ +3% |
| Gross profit | £166.4m | £151.8m | ▲ +10% |
| Admin expenses | £123.9m | £112.8m | ▲ +10% |
| Operating profit | £42.4m | £39m | ▲ +9% |
| Finance costs | £8.4m | £6.4m | ▲ +30% |
| Profit before tax | £34.3m | £33.7m | ▲ +2% |
| Net profit | £25.2m | £22.7m | ▲ +11% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Cash | £11.8m | £9.3m | ▲ +27% |
| Net assets | £161.6m | £120.3m | ▲ +34% |
| Dividends paid | £0 | −£22.4m | ▲ +100% |
| People & pay | |||
| Avg. headcount | 2,496 | 2,322 | ▲ +7% |
| Staff cost | £148m | £136.3m | ▲ +9% |
| Director pay | £2.6m | £2.7m | ▼ −5% |
| Highest-paid director | £643k | £686k | ▼ −6% |
The parent company of the STEM recruitment group recorded growth despite a wider slowdown in UK talent demand, with turnover rising 3.3% to £1.46bn. The filing points to operational discipline and three recent acquisitions for supporting the top line. Operating profit ticked up 9% to £42.4m, accompanying a modest headcount expansion.
Numatic International Limited [2]
Operating via numatic.com, the company is a privately held British manufacturer of domestic, commercial, and industrial cleaning equipment, best known as the maker of the Henry vacuum cleaner brand and solely owned by its founder Chris Duncan.
Margin squeeze
| Line | FY25 | FY24 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £237.2m | £240.7m | ▼ −1% |
| Gross profit | £116m | £116.6m | ▼ −1% |
| Admin expenses | £89.9m | £85.7m | ▲ +5% |
| Operating profit | £20.3m | £25.2m | ▼ −20% |
| Finance costs | £91,000 | £257k | ▼ −65% |
| Profit before tax | £22.7m | £28m | ▼ −19% |
| Net profit | £18.1m | £23.1m | ▼ −22% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Cash | £73.7m | £80.2m | ▼ −8% |
| Net assets | £237.5m | £214.9m | ▲ +10% |
| People & pay | |||
| Avg. headcount | 1,479 | 1,438 | ▲ +3% |
| Staff cost | £71m | £69.3m | ▲ +2% |
| Director pay | £5.2m | £5.9m | ▼ −11% |
| Highest-paid director | £2.4m | £2.3m | ▲ +2% |
The maker of the Henry vacuum cleaner saw margins contract this year. While turnover held broadly flat at £237.2m, operating profit dropped 19% to £20.3m. The filing attributes the contraction to geopolitical tension and rising commodity prices, alongside increases in both distribution and administrative costs.
Fei Foods Limited [3]
FEI Foods Limited is a South Wales-based manufacturer of own-brand microwaveable rice, grain products, and snack pots for retailers and caterers, operating as a subsidiary of the Marbour Group (feifoods.co.uk).
Solid growth
| Line | FY25 | FY24 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £148.7m | £132.4m | ▲ +12% |
| Gross profit | £48.2m | £44.5m | ▲ +8% |
| Admin expenses | £28.2m | £30.6m | ▼ −8% |
| Operating profit | £20.4m | £14.5m | ▲ +41% |
| Finance costs | £2.1m | £2.6m | ▼ −19% |
| Profit before tax | £18.3m | £11.9m | ▲ +54% |
| Net profit | £13.7m | £8.6m | ▲ +58% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Cash | £5.2m | £5.9m | ▼ −12% |
| Net assets | £34.8m | £27.6m | ▲ +26% |
| Dividends paid | −£6.5m | −£6.8m | ▲ +4% |
| People & pay | |||
| Avg. headcount | 548 | 534 | ▲ +3% |
| Staff cost | £24.8m | £22.6m | ▲ +10% |
| Director pay | £192k | £574k | ▼ −67% |
| Highest-paid director | £192k | £574k | ▼ −67% |
A tidy bowl for the South Wales manufacturer of microwaveable rice and grain pouches. Turnover climbed 12% to £148.6m, and operating profit rose to £20.4m. The filing notes that a non-recurring credit from prior-year overcharges landed in the administrative expenses line, benefiting the underlying performance slightly.
Morson Projects Limited [4]
Operating via morson-projects.co.uk, the company acts as the engineering consultancy and design arm of the privately owned UK recruitment and resourcing business Morson Group.
Flat but stable
| Line | FY25 | FY24 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £98.3m | £102.9m | ▼ −5% |
| Gross profit | £19.2m | £18.2m | ▲ +6% |
| Admin expenses | £8.7m | £8.4m | ▲ +3% |
| Operating profit | £9.8m | £9.8m | ▲ +0% |
| Finance costs | £381k | £303k | ▲ +26% |
| Profit before tax | £9.5m | £10.6m | ▼ −11% |
| Net profit | £7.1m | £7.9m | ▼ −11% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Cash | £615k | £401k | ▲ +53% |
| Net assets | £27.7m | £23.6m | ▲ +17% |
| Dividends paid | −£3m | — | |
| People & pay | |||
| Avg. headcount | 437 | 429 | ▲ +2% |
| Staff cost | £30.6m | £29.7m | ▲ +3% |
The engineering design arm of the Morson Group filed a broadly stable set of numbers despite a slight dip in the top line. Turnover slipped 4.5% to £98.3m, but operating profit held perfectly flat at £9.8m. The filing highlights strong delivery in aerospace and a surge in energy grid modernisation work for supporting activity.
Gft Financial Limited [5]
Formerly known as Rule Financial Limited, the company operates as a UK IT consultancy arm of the German-headquartered GFT Technologies SE group, providing specialised technology services to the financial industry via gft.com.
Heavy restructuring
| Line | FY25 | FY24 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £74.1m | £102.7m | ▼ −28% |
| Gross profit | £21.9m | £38.4m | ▼ −43% |
| Admin expenses | £28.8m | £38.1m | ▼ −25% |
| Operating profit | −£5.2m | £4.7m | ▼ −212% |
| Finance costs | £38,609 | £54,936 | ▼ −30% |
| Profit before tax | £100k | £10.7m | ▼ −99% |
| Net profit | £1.4m | £9.4m | ▼ −85% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Cash | £1.4m | £5m | ▼ −71% |
| Net assets | £17.3m | £21.1m | ▼ −18% |
| Dividends paid | −£5.3m | −£10.2m | ▲ +48% |
| People & pay | |||
| Avg. headcount | 144 | 235 | ▼ −39% |
| Staff cost | £25.9m | £34.2m | ▼ −24% |
| Director pay | £823k | £1.1m | ▼ −26% |
| Highest-paid director | £1m | £1.2m | ▼ −18% |
A challenging year for the UK IT consultancy arm of Germany's GFT Technologies. Turnover fell 28% to £74.1m as tier-one financial clients paused large transformation programmes and pulled work in-house. The cost base contracted in response, with average headcount falling from 235 to 144, but operating profit still moved into a £5.1m loss. The entity remained in the black at the pre-tax level following a £5.2m injection of investment income.
Between pressured vacuum makers and contracting tech consultancies, it is a good day to stay low to the ground and wait for the geopolitics to blow over.
Sources
- Morson Group Limited
- Numatic International Limited
- Fei Foods Limited
- Morson Projects Limited
- Gft Financial Limited