Comparex makes a loss in 2015 despite soaring sales

Gross margin falls to 7.41 per cent but firm hails 'significant investment'

Comparex is optimistic that a number of new private sector customers and public framework wins will help it return to profit, after announcing it made a loss in 2015.

For the year ending 31 March, the licensing and cloud firm made a £1m loss after tax, compared with a profit after tax of £159,000 the year before. Over the same period sales at the firm rose 31 per cent to £42m, the company said in accounts recently filed with Companies House.

"Gross margin, however, fell to 7.41 per cent," said Comparex's executive vice president of UK and Germany Achim Herber. "This is mainly due to decrease in gross margin from public sector business and a large number of new customer acquisitions and corrections from the prior year, related primarily to overstatement of supplier rebates and revenues and cost of sales cut-off."

Herber hailed "significant investment" in Comparex throughout the year, highlighting its new office in York and "a large number" of new private sector customers and two public sector framework wins.

He said trading performance was "consistent with the long-term strategic objectives" and that he looks "forward to an increase in profitability in the ensuing year".

Comparex is hoping a services push will help it get there.

"The company has also launched a services division, to be delivered through in-house competencies and best-of-breed partners," Herber said.

"This will focus on Microsoft Office 365 deployment and consumption, Azure workload migration and traditional software-based professional services. Coupled with this, the company also plans to roll out its in-house SAM2Go Software Asset Management platform to further enhance its customers' utilisation and management of their software licence estates."