Ballymaloe Cookery School returns to profit after Covid closures

Gordon Deegan

The Ballymaloe Cookery School last year recorded post-tax profits of €93,670.

The Co Cork cookery school business returned to profit after Covid-19 enforced closures resulted in post-tax losses of €193,097 in 2020.

The recovery has continued this year with company director Toby Allen confirming that all places for the school’s flagship 12-week certificate course are sold out.

The school – majority owned by Darina Allen – runs three such courses a year. A place costs a student €13,195.

“We are happy that we returned to profitability in 2021 and would expect again to be in profit for 2022,” Mr Allen said.

The 2020 losses followed profits of €148,429 and €62,134 over the two prior 12-month periods.

Numbers employed increased by three to 63 last year and staff costs, net of wage subsidy payments, totalled €1.02 million.

At the end of December last year, the company had accumulated profits of €2.74 million. The company’s cash funds increased from €1.09 million to €1.73 million.