Bettys and Taylors Group: Global demand for Yorkshire Tea helped Harrogate business grow sales to almost £300m

However, pre-tax profit fell 26 per cent to £12.9m compared to £17.6m the year before.

Paul Cogan, group finance and resources director, said: “We have much to be grateful for as our family business has continued to thrive despite the challenging conditions.

"When we started the year, we expected trading to be particularly tough, and we prepared ourselves to weather the storm of high inflation, unfavourable exchange rates, and a cost-of-living crisis.

"It’s been a year when the creativity and agility of our people, the strength of our brands, and the loyalty of our customers have helped us deliver impressive results.”

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The 2023 sales performance saw Yorkshire Tea grow its market leading position in both value and volume, ending the year with a 36.7 per cent value share of the black tea market, compared to 34.4 per cent the previous year.

The group said that Taylors of Harrogate coffee continued to retain its leading position in the roast and ground category with 19.6 per cent value share of the market. This was supported by a new advertising campaign entitled ‘It takes a big family to make a great coffee’ which launched in October 2023.

The business performance was also recognised with a King’s Award for International Trade, in acknowledgment of the growth trajectory in overseas markets for Yorkshire Tea and Taylors speciality tea over the last six years, as well as for the business’s commitment to fostering long-term relationships with international partners and distributors.

Employees shared in the Group Prosperity Scheme, each receiving an additional 8.8 per cent of their salary.

Meanwhile, the year also saw investment in systems and spaces, including the refurbishment of the Belmont Room at Bettys in York – an art deco function room created by the same designers who styled the Queen Mary cruise liner.

During 2023 the group invested £403,108 – both financial and in kind – in charitable and community activities in the UK, with a focus on environmental action, such as tree planting and conservation, educational support and community bursaries.

The year also saw the business celebrate the 20th anniversary of the group’s flagship community project, the Cone Exchange. Meanwhile, it launched a new partnership with the Woodland Trust which will see up to 50,000 trees planted at their flagship woodland creation project at Snaizeholme in the Yorkshire Dales.

The group also invested £1.1m into livelihood, social and environmental initiatives across its tea and coffee supply chain. This included a partnership with ActionAid, the Ethical Tea Partnership and Lavazza, to support human rights in tea growing regions of Kenya, as well as water and sanitation projects, and enhanced education and training projects in sourcing communities across Kenya, Rwanda, Zambia and Brazil.

The business continued to work in partnership with Natural Capital Partners, TIST (The International Small Group Tree Planting Programme) and the Kenya Tea Development Agency to help tea smallholders grow trees on their farms. The programme has planted over three million trees on and around Mount Kenya.