Growing software firm looks for new home

EG Solutions has grown to employ 90 people, with up to 60 of them based at its Dunston Business Village headquarters, near Penkridge.

But founder and chief executive Elizabeth Gooch says the company has outgrown its offices; "We are bursting at the seams at the moment. Unfortunately it is proving difficult to find suitable new premises but we want to stay around here. It is very central for all our UK customers and there are a lot of new businesses moving into the area."

The growth follows major investment in the company's sales and marketing as well as big spending on development of new products.

EG Solution's software is designed to help companies manage their call centres, back offices and branches more efficiently.

Its customers include companies at home and abroad in financial services, utilities and healthcare.

The company raised £3.2 million in a share placing in January to fund its growth, and says it has "invested significantly in accelerating product development". Investment in research & development is up 70 per cent on the same time last year, and two major new products – eg forecasting and eg mobile – were launched at The Shard tower in London last week, on the same day the firm unveiled its latest results.

On paper EG Solutions slipped to a loss over the first six months of the year as it spent heavily. The half-time loss of £330,000 compares to a £620,000 profit 12 months ago.

But the company's order book of multi-year contracts over the next three to four years has increased by £2.5 million from a year ago to £15.5m.

Sales in the six months to the end of July were down to £3.6m from £3.99m a year ago, but the company said this would have represented a rise of 16% on the £3.1m underlying revenues (excluding one-off deals) for the equivalent period in 2014.

And Mrs Gooch said the company was actually performing ahead of expectations. It had predicted sales of £8.8m this year and a los of £500,000, but now expected to break even.

EG also said it had a 'strong balance sheet' with cash of £3.1m.

Chairman Duncan McIntyre said: "The business has developed in line with our strategy of driving growth and further enhancing our market position in the expanding back office optimisation market. We have invested in both sales and marketing as well as developing two flagship products. These products will extend our market leading position and the board is excited about the opportunities they present.

"We have strong visibility and a building order book and look forward with confidence to the rest of 2015 with full year expectations now ahead of previous guidance."

However, there will be no half-year dividend payout for shareholders.

It follows the best year in the company's history after piling on the sales in 2014. EG Solutions returned profit and increased its staff numbers by nearly half after a tough 2013 that ended with the departure of the company's then chairman, founder Elizabeth Gooch took over the reins again as chief executive and chairman.

Now backed up by new chairman Duncan McIntyre, she led the business to a 69 per cent hike in revenue to £7.54 million and a pre-tax profit of £410,000 after a £1.48m loss the year before.