Irish Water PR firm Murray Consultants sees profits rise 11%

Profits at Murray Consultants, one of Ireland’s biggest public relations agencies, rose by 11 per cent last year to just under €1 million.

Latest accounts show it recorded a pretax profit of €937,779 in 2013, up from €846,780 the previous year.

This was in spite of a 2 per cent decline in its gross profit to €3.9 million.The company said the reduction was due to a tougher “prior year comparator” when revenue was driven by a number of one-off projects.

Murray’s profit after depreciation and tax was €820,168, up from €734,873 in 2012. It closed the year with accumulated profits of €1.6 million.

Managing director Pat Walsh said the agency was on track to achieve “good revenue growth” this year but its profit would be lower than 2013 due to a significant investment in the business and some exceptional costs.

Recession work

“The 12 months to mid-2014 saw a slight lull as recession-related work eased off before real growth kicked in, but that’s changed dramatically and we’ve been going gangbusters since the middle of this year,” he said.

“As we enter a new growth phase, we’re investing over €1 million between now and mid-2015 which will impact profits in the short term but will add value for clients and drive sustainable growth out of Dublin and London.”

He said the investment encompasses its newly established office in London, enhanced IT systems and social media capability, and relocation to a new city-centre base in Dublin.

Co-founders’ fees

The abridged accounts show that €269,028 was paid in consultancy fees to co-founders Jim Milton and and Joe Murray, via a company called Camberry Ltd.

While the pair are no longer shareholders, they are “still very much involved” on a day-to-day basis and continue as members of the board, Mr Walsh said.

The agency added to the board last year with the appointment of Avril Collins. Mr Walsh is now the largest shareholder, followed by fellow directors Pauline McAlester and Mark Brennock.

New hires last year included Andrew Sharkey and Malika Shermatova in London, and former Digicel investor relations executive Doug Keatinge in Dublin.

New clients over the past 18 months have included mobile phone group Three, Hibernia Reit, Brehon Capital, Carval, Barretstown, Carl Scarpa and, most recently, Irish Water and its parent Ervia. Mr Walsh said it is "comfortably" adding two to three new clients a month to its roster.