Battersea Power Station Phase Two by WilkinsonEyre Source:&nbsp Peter LandersWilkinsonEyre has revealed a 43 per cent drop in pre-tax profit as staff costs soared in its first year of employee ownership The AJ100 practice, which has studios in London, Hong Kong and Sydney, published its results for the year to 31 March 2024 last week.These showed that pre-tax profit had plunged from 4.8 million in the previous period to 2.9 million in the latest spell. In 2022 the figure was 5.3 million.Revenue increased by 4 per cent to 24.5 million over the same timescale.But employment costs soared by a third to 12.2 million, while director remuneration more than quadrupled to 1.7 million. Staff numbers rose in the latest year with an average of 25 more architects employed by the practice.AdvertisementWilkinsonEyre converted to an employee-owned trust in March 2023.Managing director Oliver Tyler said work had continued at a similar intensity and that the continued trend was for the proportion of new jobs coming from overseas to rise.However, UK turnover rose by 18 per cent to 15.6 million in the latest year, while revenue from abroad dropped 15 per cent to 8.8 million.Tyler told the AJ: As with the rest of our industry, we have experienced particularly challenging market conditions over the last two to three years.While we have seen our turnover remain very stable over this period, we have seen profitability drop as costs continue to rise. However, having promoted the practice through the success of completed projects such as Battersea Power Station and 8 Bishopsgate, we forecast that we will meet our growth targets and profits will be up for this financial year.AdvertisementAs well as the Bishopsgate scheme (pictured below), WilkinsonEyre also completed the 21 Moorfields office development in the City of London.A number of the practices projects are live in the UK, the US, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Australia and elsewhere.In October, deputy prime minister Angela Rayner called in plans by WilkinsonEyre for a 750 million film studio on green-belt land in Buckinghamshire, which was refused by the local council earlier this year. Source:Dirk Lindner8 Bishopsgate by WilkinsonEyre2024-12-04Greg Pitchercomment and share