Date: February 20, 2018
At the Annual General Meeting held at AMG Packaging & Paper Company Limited on February 20, 2018, The Chairman, Mr. Barrington Chisholm formally made the introductions and welcome of the board of directors and the general audience.
It was highlighted that for the financial year ended August 31, 2017, that the company had increased its revenues by 5% to $660.25 million as compared to the prior year. The chairman stated that “2017 was a very difficult one for AMG Packaging & Paper Company Limited.” Manufacturing costs increased by 10% from $458.43 million to $506.26 million in 2017. As such gross profit fell by 10% amounting to a total of $154 million. This was due to the “underperforming of the Toilet Division and the decision to discontinue the production of Toilet Paper by the end of the second quarter.”
Administrative expenses increased by 23% from $71.05 million to $87.64 million in 2017. Net Profit significantly declined by 56% to $36.62 million. The chairman stated, “Declining profits forced us to take a critical look at the company and make crucial choices.” The decision is to refocus the core business of box manufacturing which has been improving. There is an intention of transitioning from our ISO 9001:2008 to the new standard ISO 9001:2015 which is scheduled to be completed by September 2018.
When asked about liquidating the machinery for the toilet paper operation of the company, Mr. Chisolm stated that AMG has accepted an offer from a company to make purchases of the equipment. The General Manager, Michael Chin, added that the “Mother rolls” have been fully sold out and only a minority of toilet papers is still remaining.”
Mr. Chisolm added that there has been a significant loss to the company, as its exclusive distributor had encountered difficulties which greatly impacted the company. AMG was unable to act as a retailer in this line of business and as a result, needed the assistance to get the products to consumers. He stated that many efforts were made to seek alternative means of distributing but was unsuccessful due to the saturation and competition from other companies.
When asked about paper towel production, Mr. Chisolm clearly mentioned that “the company has existed that market.” There was a question regarding the future outlook for the company in producing paper shopping bags with the present “pending ban on plastic bags.” The Chairman added that “ it is something on the table”, however, the main focus at this time is to “recover from the toilet paper business and strengthen the box business.”
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