Brompton Bicycle says that factors including producing more special edition bikes, with the higher price tag they attract, as well as the ongoing benefits of moving to larger premises four years ago helped fuel strong growth in both sales and pre-tax profits in its latest financial year.

Sales at the folding bike firm during the 12 months to March 2019 totalled £42.5 million, up 18 per cent on the previous year, while pre-tax profits rose 27 per cent to £4.0 million.

By volume, 48,956 bikes were sold during the year, compared to 45,410 during the previous 12 months, with Brompton firmly established as the UK’s leading bicycle manufacturer for a number of years now.

The results reflect the second full financial year since Brompton moved to its current factory in Greenford, West London, which hosted the active travel hustings before last month’s general election.

The company said it was “well bedded in at the new facility and that “other benefits associated with the move are having the space to innovate and also meet future increase in demand.”

In its report and accounts filed at Companies House, Brompton said that gross margin had increased during the year from 46.5 per cent to 48.9 per cent.

It attributed that to “the benefits of the new factory, [an] increase in sales where we have direct distribution, a higher proportion of special edition bike sales which achieve greater margins, and gains associated with foreign currency.”

Some 73 per cent of the bikes produced in 2018/19 were sold outside the UK, although since the year-end the company has also widened its domestic distribution, selling its range for the first time through 49 Halfords stores with click-and-collect available at a further 76 of the retailer’s sites.