North West wholesaler Parfetts has announced a drop in annual turnover on the back of “tough economic conditions” and the impact of duty fraud.

Turnover declined by just over 1% while operating profit fell from £4.6m to £3.7m, which managing director David Grimes described as “very satisfactory” given the circumstances.

“The markets in which we operate are highly competitive and, as a result, there is generally a constant pressure on sales and margins,” he added.

“Duty fraud is also still badly affecting our market and will go on doing so until government and HMRC adopt some effective actions. We continue to lobby hard on this matter.”

He said the success of the Go Local retail club was compensating for the difficulties experienced in other areas of the company.

“We will continue to focus on Go Local in the coming year; this is a vital and successful area for ourselves which also delivers real results for our customers.”

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