Crown Paints reported a net profit of Ksh 252.8 million for the first half of the year, up from KSh 29 million from a similar period last year. Unaudited results for the half-year ending June 2020 attribute the 765% jump to an uptick in business in the first quarter. Company Secretary Conrad Nyukuri says, “for the first quarter of the year, the business had picked up rapidly, giving signs of a great year ahead.”

The profit jump is contrary to a 10% year on year revenue drop from KSh 4.3 billion in 2019 H1 to KSh 3.9 billion in 2020 H1. The decline in revenue stems from the spread of the coronavirus, which affected businesses across. Nevertheless, the company says it maintained sales through cost-cutting initiatives and leveraging its brand and stakeholder network.

“Our company management put in place measures to control expenses at the bare minimum and relied heavily on the strength of our brand and our network of stakeholders to move our products.”
Basic and diluted earnings per share grew from Ksh o.42 to Ksh 3.55 YoY.

Last year, Crown Paints made a full-year profit of KSh 317.2 million.