Strong trading has continued at Inspecs, the Bath-based glasses designer and manufacturer, with sales rising by nearly $60m (£43.5m) over the past three months as it carries on bedding in two major acquisitions made last year.
In a third-quarter trading update to shareholders, the firm said unaudited revenues for the nine months to September 30 were $185m against $125.7m achieved at the six months stage.
With Covid-19 continuing to impact its global supply chain, Inspecs’ board remained cautious of headwinds in the fourth quarter, the update said.
However, it added that the group remained confident in its full-year outlook and said its 2022 order book was in line with management’s expectations.
Last month the firm reported a 562% increase in first-half revenues following the acquisition of historic UK spectacle lens company Norville and German firm Eschenbach Optik in November and December last year.
The firm, based in Bath’s old Gas Light and Coke building on Upper Bristol Road, produces a broad range of predominantly mid-market and entry-level priced frames for spectacles, sunglasses and safety glasses with operations across the globe, including factories in Vietnam, China, London and Italy.
Inspecs paid £2.4m for Norville after it fell into administration in July last year – a move which has given it further vertical integration and access to the lens market.
The takeover of Eschenbach Optik for €94.85m has produced a strong platform to grow in the independent retail market in Europe and the US.
Inspecs was set up by former bond trader Robin Totterman in 1988. Today its customers include global optical and non-optical retailers, global distributors and independent opticians, with its distribution network covering more than 80 countries and reaching approximately 70,000 points of sale.
