Tombola hails arcade launch as full-year turnover soars 24%
Online bingo operator’s 2016-17 turnover hits £73.7m while gross profit also climbs 19% year-on-year
Tombola has announced a 24% rise in full-year turnover for the 12 months ended 30 April 2017, driven by the launch of its arcade product and market share growth across the UK and Europe.
According to accounts filed on Companies House, the online bingo operator recorded turnover of £73.7m during the 12-month period, up from the £59.5m the firm reported in 2015-16.
Meanwhile, gross profit was up 18.5% year-on-year from £21.8m to £25.9m in the 2016-17 period, although its gross profit margin dropped by 1.6pp to 35.1% after a 27% rise in cost of sales.
The Sunderland-headquartered company attributed much of the rise in turnover and profits to strong growth in its core markets of Italy, Spain and the UK, and branching out into non-bingo games.
Tombola is currently in the process of building a new headquarters in Sunderland, UK
Tombola arcade was first launched in 2016, enabling customers to play a range of slots and scratchcard games from 5p up to £1, and was highlighted as a key reason for its success at the EGR Operator Awards in October.
“Tombola loves bingo for bingo’s sake rather than as a means to another end and it continues to set its own rules for success rather than following the path most travelled,” the Awards judges said.
“The company’s performance cross-jurisdiction and in its approach to social responsibility meant that the panel felt recognition was very much appropriate.”
However, in the group report, which went live on Companies House today, tombola also highlighted Brexit as “the principle risk and uncertainty the company faces” in the future.
“There is still a number of Brexit scenarios which may cause issues with trade in Spain and Italy, however the management team are currently in the process of reviewing options to ensure the company have contingency plans for business continuity.”
Last year, tombola appointed four new heads of department as part of the online bingo operator’s five-year strategy to double turnover, while it is also in the process of building a new multi-million pound HQ in Sunderland.