LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Portmeirion Group has temporarily shut its ceramics factory, but insisted it had enough warehoused stock to serve growing online demand and strengthening export markets.
The AIM-listed potter, which makes and distributes homeware items under the Portmeirion, Spode and Royal Worcester brands, among others, said the Stoke-on-Trent factory would shut for three weeks with immediate effect.

But it added: "We have good depth of stock in our warehouses, which will continue to supply our customers around the world. Although we are seeing short-term order reduction from UK and US retailers, due to government restrictions on retail store openings, our online sales grew strongly through March and we have a significant forward export order book."

Portmeirion also said its Far Eastern markets, which were hit by the virus earlier in the year, were "starting to return to normal", as were supply chains, and it was taking "significant orders" from export markets.

Combined with cost-cutting measures, which include delaying dividend payouts and paring back non-essential spending, Portmeirion said: "We therefore believe that, despite the uncertainty that the virus presents, the business is well-positioned in the short- and long-term."

By midday, shares in Portmeirion had jumped 15% to 278.0p.

Portmeirion has converted two production lines at its Wax Lyrical home fragrance factory in Cumbria to make alcohol-based hand sanitiser and spray, which it said would be supplied to "local communities, care homes, the wider NHS network and pharmacists across the country".

"We will continue to supply regular Wax Lyrical ranges from current stock in the coming months," it added.

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