“C&C delivered an improved performance against all financial measures,” Patrick McMahon, C&C Group’s new CEO, has stated.

In its Irish division, the drinks maker saw net revenue rise by over 24% to €278m, driven by the return of on-side trade post-pandemic. Operator profit grew by 49% to €28m with profit margins rising from 8.4% to 10.1%.

C&C relayed that its total on-trade customer numbers were down 0.6% across the Irish market, but the firm still grew its market share to 40.4%.

This decrease in foot traffic was offset by a growing number of customers ordering online, with 81% of customers now ordering online, according to C&C, compared to 66% last year.

Bulmers’ trade volume increased 9.1% over the year, driven by a 58% rise in on-site sales following the end of Covid restrictions. “As anticipated,” the company revealed, “the introduction of Minimum Unit Pricing, in the off-site trade, resulted in a volume decline of 10.5%.”

Last week C&C said one of its units had faced delays to integrate business management software, which is expected to have a minor impact on the group’s profit in the next fiscal year.

The company has also announced David Forde’s resignation from the position of CEO after almost three years on the job, being replaced by Patrick McMahon, the former finance chief.

Bulmers continues to be the largest and most popular cider brand in Ireland, according to the company’s annual report.