A near €1.4 million gain from the sale of assets lifted profits at home-decor business Des Kelly Carpets to €2.3 million last year, the company's accounts show.

According to returns recently filed with the Companies' Registration Office, the Dublin retailer of carpets and furnishings had a gross profit of €7.2 million in the year to the April 30th, 2004. This was an increase of nearly 9 per cent on the previous year.

Des Kelly's 2004 operating profits rose by more than 40 per cent to €1.26 million.

A €1.38 million surplus on the sale of assets left the company with profit before tax of €2.35 million, compared with €577,000 the previous year. There was nobody in the company available to give details of the asset disposal when The Irish Times contacted it.

A fall in interest charges to €287,000 from just over €300,000 also contributed to the the increase in profits.

The directors, Des Kelly and Youlanda Kelly, who are also the company's shareholders, did not pay a dividend for the year.

Instead, the company brought forward its profit after tax of €1.88 million, boosting shareholders' funds to €6.55 million at the year end from €4.67 million 12 months earlier.

The firm's net debt was more than €7 million at the end of its financial year. Its assets stood at more than €15 million. It had more than €2.5 million in stock and €1.7 million cash at its year end.

The company boosted directors' pay to €305,683 in 2004 from €296,972 the previous year.

Staff numbers fell to 112 from 118 the previous year. However, employee costs increased to €3.73 million from €3.54 million. Workers' pay accounted for just over €3.7 million of the 2004 total, with pension contributions making up the balance.

The company donated more than €24,000 to charity during the year.