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Loom losses follow Buncrana
closure
08.10.09
THE cost of moving
Fruit of the Loom’s Irish operations on a phased
basis from Buncrana to Morocco increased the textile
giant's pretax loss to €23.7million to end of last
year, new figures show.
Accounts filed with the Companies Office show that
turnover last year fell by 11 per cent to €143.7
million. The filings show that the firm’s pretax
loss increased by 37 per cent to €23.7m.
Fruit of the Loom directors said they expected the
company to return to profitability in 2010. They
said the loss for 2008 “was expected as part of
continuing transition phase”. |
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The €1.54 million cost
of restructuring, relating to the move to Morocco,
contributed to the company’s increased losses,
according to the report, outlined yesterday in the
Irish Times.
No manufacturing is currently taking place at Fruit
of the Loom's Inishowen base so employee numbers
locally |
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are minimal. The
clothing manufacturer once employed 3,500 people in
six plants in the North West. The company announced,
in 2004, that it would shut its remaining two
factories before the end of 2009 with a resulting
loss of 650 jobs in Donegal and Derry. The company
subsequently transferred its spinning, knitting and
dyeing operations to Morocco, where it now employs
1,700 people. Accumulated losses were €140 million
at the end of December 2008 while the company’s
operating loss in 2008 more than doubled to €18.1
million from €8.7 million. Meanwhile, the costs of
the company’s “fundamental re-organisation” was €1.5
million and interest payable, €4.2 million. |
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