4imprint lifts full-year profit guidance

The company said in its interim report in August that it had seen a "very strong" first-half performance versus the same period a year earlier.

It said on Tuesday that further good progress has been made, both operationally and financially, up to the end of October 2023. As a result, it now expects full-year pre-tax profit to be "not less than" $130m, up from previous guidance of $125m. Revenue is still expected to be "slightly above" $1.3bn.

"As anticipated, the percentage increases in demand activity and revenue compared to 2022 have moderated as the year has progressed," it said.

"This reflects the contrast between the weak comparatives from the first quarter of 2022 and the significantly more challenging year-on-year comparatives arising from April onwards driven by the recovery from the pandemic."

As a result, October year to date order counts in the primary North American business were 13% higher than in 2022. Over the same period, average order values remained strong at 1% above 2022 levels, it said, resulting in overall demand revenue for October year to date at 15% higher than 2022.

"In recent weeks we have seen some evidence of softening demand patterns typical of a more cautious macro-economic environment," said 4imprint.

"That said, our experience is that a less buoyant economic outlook represents a market share opportunity for 4imprint as our financial strength allows us to keep investing in the business and to take full advantage of a market recovery."