While sales fell, Modern Beauty Salon Holdings managed to turn a profit for its fiscal year ended March 31, and made two acquisitions.
The group offers beauty and wellness services, and sells skincare and wellness products.
During the year, its revenue fell 10.6 per to about HK$693.3 million (US$88.8 million), down from $775.4 million the previous year. Receipts from sales of prepaid beauty packages during the year dropped 18.9 per cent to $558.7 million.
However, the group had an operating profit of $45.4 million for the year, up from $11.5 million the previous year. Profit attributable to equity shareholders more than trebled from about $10.4 million to about $33.3 million.
In Hong Kong, the group’s revenue decreased by 6.9 per cent. Revenue from services rendered and expiry of prepaid beauty packages and receipts were $570.9 million and $486.7 million respectively (2016: $613.2 million and $586.4 million). Revenue from the sale of skincare and wellness products was $22.4 million, down from $27.5 million.
Customer numbers rose by 2.8 per cent to about 407,000 during the year.
The group had 13 stores selling skincare and wellness products at the end of March, under the names of Be Beauty Shop and Pen across Hong Kong, Kowloon and the New Territories.
Business in Mainland China was run through three foreign-owned enterprises in Beijing, Guangzhou and Shanghai, offering six service centres (down from eight last year) .
Loss in China
Revenue in China fell from $26.6 million to $22.3 million, while receipts from prepaid beauty packages decreased by 19.2 per cent to $19.3 million. The business had a loss of $5.3 million for the year compared with a loss of $7.3 million the previous year.
One Beijing shop was closed but more are being considered for second-tier cities.
Singapore’s service centres dropped from 12 to 10, while one of Malaysia’s two centres was closed.
Revenue from business in Singapore and Malaysia fell to $69.7 million from $102.7 million. Revenue for beauty and wellness services and sales and expiry of prepaid beauty packages amounted to $67.3 million for Singapore and $46.4 million for Malaysia, down from $100.2 million and $72.1 million respectively last year.
No details were released about the group’s two service centres in Taiwan.
During the year, wholly owned subsidiary Main Deal acquired a 51 per cent interest in Care Plus International in Australia, which manufactures and sells beauty and wellness products.
Another wholly owned subsidiary Topluck International Holdings acquired a 51 per cent equity interest in Elegant Trend, a Hong Kong company with a factory in China.
