Blue Power hopes to increase prices as margins fall

Blue Power Group generated profit for the nine-month period ending January 31, 2025, of $101 million. Shareholder profits were down 15.8 per cent relative to the comparable period in the prior year for the Jamaican company.

Revenue for the nine months was higher at $687.49 million, this compared to $624.1 million at January 31, 2024.

Management said that the results reflect the adverse impact of increased shipping costs and increased commodity prices compounded by the CARICOM trade rules that now levies a 40 per cent duty on the total cost of essential raw materials.

Blue Power was founded in 2001 by Dr. Dhiru Tanna and other business partners including Antony Hart C.D., Mark Hart, Jane Fray, Peter Millingen, and Kenneth Benjamin C.D. after previously coming together to start Lumber Depot in 1998.

On recognizing that Jamaica is a large consumer of cake laundry soap the Lumber Depot founders made a strategic decision to begin a small laundry soap manufacturing operation. After initially trading as a separate legal entity called Blue Power Limited which was later merged in April 2010 with Lumber Depot to form the Blue Power Group Limited.

The Blue Power Group is considered the largest manufacturer of bar soaps in Jamaica and focuses primarily on soap manufacturing for both in house and external contract projects.

The business achieved year to-date revenue growth of 11 per cent. Chairman Jeffery Hall states, “Blue Power Group continues to be the market leader in the manufacturing of bath and laundry bar soaps in Jamaica and is absolutely determined to retain the excellent value and strong price-competitive position of its full range of products on the Jamaican market.”

He noted, “ We will however address the compressed margins faced by the business by securing price increases and by undertaking planned initiatives to drive volume growth through innovation and improved marketing in partnership with our key customers and distributors.”

Cash and investments totaled approximately $591m as at January 31, 2025.

Blue Power says it has now completed plans for the development of land that is adjacent to core operations to allow for the expansion of plant over time, as well as for the development of commercial buildings that can contribute in due course to rental and investment income.

Hall said that Blue Power is also looking to new markets and “We are also prepared to diversify the business through opportunistic investments in related industries.”

Caribbean Money Daily

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