Shares of Bradford-based window and door company Safestyle UK rose about 6% after it said it expects to report full-year revenue growth of 26.6% compared to 2020 and 13.6% compared to 2019, delivering group revenues of about £143 million.  

Safestyle UK said it expects to report underlying profit before tax ahead of market expectations.

In a trading and operations update for the year ended January 2, 2022, Safestyle UK said: “Consistent with the group’s interim results in September 2021, the progress reported on improved margins versus both comparative periods has been sustained for the full year. 

“However, as a result of the historically low lead generation costs in H1 which normalised to pre-pandemic levels in H2, the full year gross margin, which is still expected to be over 30%, is expected to be lower than the 32.3% reported for the first half of the year.

“Notwithstanding the above, the group expects to report underlying profit before tax ahead of market expectations …

“Trading remained robust through H2 and the group finished the year with its second highest order book ever, only slightly behind the record levels at the end of 2020.  

“Trading during the first weeks of 2022 has remained healthy with our order book growing in line with our usual Q1 trading pattern.

“Pricing pressure, supply chain uncertainty and labour shortages continued to characterise the wider market in H2, combined with the impact of COVID on scheduled work and productivity.  

“However, the business continued to take prompt action to navigate these challenges including addressing cost pressures through pricing.  

“Since the interim results announcement, the group has continued to address the critical labour shortages which have impacted the industry.  

“During H2 this resource was focused both on new customers and on recovering customer service levels that had deteriorated during the pandemic.  

“Throughout this period, maintaining our operational schedules in the midst of widespread disruption proved challenging and provided a constraint upon both revenue and efficiency.  

“Nonetheless, the board is pleased with the progress that was achieved by the end of the year and believes this will underpin a more efficient operational performance in 2022.”