Kitchen Culture half-year loss widens to S$1.9m

KITCHEN Culture Holdings saw its half-year net loss widen to S$1.9 million from its year-ago deficit of S$1.7 million, as the supplier of high-end kitchen systems continued to face a slump in its residential projects, and distribution and retail segments.

Loss per share was 1.6 Singapore cents, versus 1.7 Singapore cents for the preceding period.

For the six months ended Dec 31, the group's revenue fell 39.5 per cent to S$4.7 million from S$7.8 million in the previous year.

Revenue from the residential projects business dropped by 57.1 per cent to S$1.8 million, due to fewer ongoing projects carried forward from calendar year 2016. The segment has in the last three years faced "significant challenges due to the dearth of projects in the premium market", said the group.

Likewise, sales from the retail and distribution segment fell 19.2 per cent to S$2.9 million, with declines in its Singapore and Hong Kong businesses.

Kitchen Culture said: "The group's retail and distribution business had been slow in the past few years but we are seeing more orders in our overseas markets, despite the consolidation of our showrooms in Hong Kong."

Looking ahead, the group expects a pickup in residential projects as it noted the high numbers of en-bloc projects in Singapore in 2018. The company said its order book pipeline, based on letters of award and intent, currently stands at S$16.6 million for two residential projects in Singapore which are expected to be completed over the next two to three years.

There are also plans to add new brands of appliances to the group's portfolio of products, Kitchen Culture said.

Finally, the group also said it is exploring options to strengthen its balance sheet and working capital position, including restructuring its current payment obligations, fundraising and other financing options.