The continued expansion of its laundry business across continental Europe was behind the solid gains made by Photo-Me International (PHTM) during the reported period. The photo booth and laundry operator grew the number of Revolution 24-hour self-service laundry units by half to 3,251, predominately in the region. This lifted European sales - which account for over half the group total - by 19 per cent to £112m. It also opened its first launderette in Japan, believed to be one of the largest global launderette markets.
Laundry operations generated more than 60 per cent of revenue in Portugal, compared with 13 per cent in the previous year. In addition to the laundry units, 27 launderettes were opened. In the UK, 70 Revolution units were also rolled out in petrol station forecourts and other high-footfall locations.