The operator of Electric Picnic returned to profit last year.
New accounts filed by EP Republic Ltd show that the company recorded profits after tax of €1.56 million for the 16 months to the end of April 2023 and followed Covid-19 related losses of €336,446 in 2021.
The company made the profits on the back of a then record 70,000 music fans attending the 2022 event at Stradbally in Co Laois.
Those headlining the event in 2022 included Snow Patrol, Arctic Monkeys and Dermot Kennedy while Fred Again, Fontaines DC and Anne-Marie also featured.
The accounts show that the company last year paid out dividends of €7 million to its Irish parent firm and Denis Desmond’s MCD joint venture with Live Nation, Live Nation Gaiety Ireland Holdings Ltd
The joint venture firm in turn paid a dividend of €4.5 million to its UK based parent, LN Gaiety Holdings Ltd.
Commenting on the performance of the MCD live music business in 2024, Denis Desmond said: “It has been the best year in our history to be honest.”
Shows this year included Taylor Swift’s sell out gigs at the Aviva and Coldplay’s sold out run at Croke Park and Mr Desmond said: “It has been quite phenomenal. We have sold three million-plus tickets in 2024.”
He said: “The state of the business is great and the number of Irish acts are doing incredibly well on the global stage is phenomenal.”
Mr Desmond said that the audience “goes from six to aged 76 and the great thing about our business is that people who went to gigs 50 years ago still go today and long may it last”
“There is big demand for good shows and if you are good there is an audience out there for you,” he said.
The accounts for EP Republic show that it recorded pretax profits of €1.86 million and it incurred a corporation tax charge of €296,000.
The profit for last year offset by the €7 million dividend payout reduced the company’s accumulated profits from €7.54 million to €2.11 million.
Cash funds reduced from €7.5 million to €2.82 million.
In August days after this year’s sell out event for Electric Picnic, tickets sold out for the 2025 event.
The festival has a loyalty scheme where music fans who attended previous Electric Picnics can purchase tickets at a discounted price as a reward.
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