The Sunday Times Profit Track 100 is an annual league table published in association with The Sunday Times newspaper in the UK. It ranks Britain's 100 private companies with the fastest-growing profits over their last three years. It is published in The Sunday Times each April, with an awards event typically held in June, [1] and alumni dinners during the year. The league table is researched and produced by Fast Track, an Oxford-based research and networking events business. [2]
Fast Track is a leading research and events company that has built a network of the UK's top-performing private companies, from the fastest-growing to the biggest, through its rankings in The Sunday Times. Founded in 1997 [2] by Hamish Stevenson, [3] [4] it now publishes seven annual league tables and brings company founders and directors together at invitation-only networking awards events and alumni dinners. [5]
Companies have to meet the criteria below to be able to qualify for the Profit Track 100 league table:
Companies that do not meet the criteria can still be considered for the Ones to Watch programme. [6] This is a selection of companies that have either achieved, or predict, good profit growth.
Exclusions
Excluded companies include pure property and financial trading companies, and those with restricted accounts; companies that are equal joint ventures, or majority-owned by quoted or other companies
Profit Track 100 was launched in 2000 to recognise Britain's private companies with the fastest growing profits. Since then, 1,500 companies have appeared on the league table, including:
The 21st annual Sunday Times Profit Track 100 league table supplement was due to be published on 5 April 2020. However, given the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, Fast Track delayed publication in order to liaise with the featured companies. [16] Out of the original 100 companies, 70 explicitly asked to feature, and 30 did not want to be included. [17] In addition to the league table ranking, the supplement highlighted the positive actions that some companies took to support their staff, local communities, the NHS and key workers during the initial stages of the pandemic. [18] [19] The number one ranked company was fitness clothing retailer Gymshark, which grew its operating profits from £1.1m in 2016 to £18.6m in 2019. [20]
| Year | Company Name | Category | Profit Growth (3 year average) | Latest Profits (£000s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | JobServe | Internet Recruitment publisher | 124.14% | 7,250 |
| 2001 | Hazell Carr | Actuarial Services Provider | 114.24% | 14,472 |
| 2002 | Complete Communications | TV and Film Producer | 177.50% | 15,359 |
| 2003 | Apple Corps | Music Rights Owner | 194.06% | 18,234 |
| 2004 | The Entertainment Group | Film Distributor | 196.85% | 61,558 |
| 2005 | Binomial | Insurance Underwriter | 159.30% | 13,556 |
| 2006 | HESCO Bastion | Defence Barrier Maker | 236.04% | 35,598 |
| 2007 | Virgin Money | Bank | 147.00% | 9,117 |
| 2008 | AFI Uplift | Construction equipment supplier | 114.24% | 5,402 |
| 2009 | Merlin Entertainment | Visitor Attraction operator | 129.66% | 127,400 |
| 2010 | Mayday Healthcare | Recruitment Consultancy | 166.54% | 9,704 |
| 2011 | R&R Ice Cream | Ice Cream Manufacturer | 210.22% | 43,439 |
| 2012 | Partnership Assurance | Life Assurance Specialist | 210.53% | 37,701 |
| 2013 | Partnership Assurance | Life Assurance Specialist | 176.36% | 66,970 |
| 2014 | The Hut Group | Online Retailer | 178.03% | 10,853 |
| 2015 | The Hut Group | Online Retailer | 216.58% | 15,959 |
| 2016 | Anesco | Energy Efficiency Consultancy | 179.15% | 20,706 |
| 2017 | Paymentsense | Payment processing services | 203% | 14,000 |
| 2018 | Dreams | Bed manufacturer and retailer | 166.89% | 34,505 |
| 2019 | Loveholidays | Online travel agency | 190.96% | 13,350 |
| 2020 | Gymshark | Fitness clothing retailer | 156.20% | 18,565 |
Profit Track 100 is one of seven league tables of private companies produced by Fast Track and published in The Sunday Times:
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The Sunday Times Fast Track 100 was an annual league table published in association with The Sunday Times newspaper in the UK. It ranks Britain's 100 private companies with the fastest-growing sales over the last three years. It is published in The Sunday Times each December, with a conference and awards event typically held in May, and alumni dinners during the year. The list is researched and produced by Fast Track, an Oxford-based research and networking events business. Sir Richard Branson and the Virgin Group have supported the Fast Track 100 league table since Hamish Stevenson founded Fast Track in 1997.
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