Entertainment company Main Event’s net profit for 2022 jumped a massive 837%, signalling the company’s strong turnaround from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Business Journalist David Rose said he expected the company’s first-quarter results for 2023 to be even better. 

Main Event was one of the hardest hit companies during the pandemic as the lockdown of the island’s entertainment industry and the cancellation of events struck at the core of its business.

In 2020 the company recorded a net loss of $18 million. It rebounded slightly in 2021, with the company recording a net profit of $16 million. 

For the financial year 2022, Main Event recorded $151 million in net profit, an 837% increase from 2021.

Speaking on Taking Stock with Kalilah Reynolds, Rose noted that the company did this despite not returning to pre-pandemic revenue levels.

“Main Event had quite an outstanding year. In its July quarter alone they made more in net profit than in any prior fiscal year… Interestingly, they still have not gotten back to pre-COVID levels of revenue,” he said.

He noted that in 2019, the company reported $1.8 billion in revenue compared to the $1.55 billion it reported in 2022.

“We have not seen their “grand numbers” yet because Christmas would be in their first quarter which ended in January and those numbers are not due until March 17. Those numbers would include the Burna Boy concert and those massive staff parties,”  Rose said.

He noted that the company has managed to keep their costs stable as COVID fatigue has propelled the local party scene. 

Speaking on the company’s ability to increase profits despite not returning to pre-COVID revenue, the analyst said “that shows that they are much more efficient. The company has spoken heavily about cost control which they’ve built out because of the pandemic.”

Similarly, the Head of Asset Management at JN Group, Hugh Miller, said many companies improved their efficiency during the pandemic through nearshoring.

“Historically, a lot of listed companies would source alot of their inputs from Europe, North America and so on. But with the supply chain issues during the pandemic a lot of them were forced to source their input either locally or in the Caricom region,” Miller explained.

“And then they realised that the price differential and quality it was not that far off. So that has given them some efficiency in their business in terms of controlling costs,” he added.

Rose said that with the entertainment industry experiencing a boom and Main Event’s cost control measures, the company is in a good position for continued growth.