Direct Line Regulatory News (DLG)

20 Oct 2005 10:00

Delling Group PLC20 October 2005 For Release 20 October 2005 DELLING GROUP PLC Trading update and brand development "Delling benefits from rebranding to grow customer numbers and sales" Customer and sales growth Delling Group PLC ("Delling" or "the Group" or "the Company"), the AIM-listedmarketing support services group, announces that following the gradualintegration of various brands, as detailed below, the Group has seen a recentincrease in the number of new customers and an upturn in sales, to the extentthat turnover during the months of August and September 2005 was 180 per centahead of the prior period last year both in terms of organic and acquisitiongrowth. The directors are confident that the Group is on the track to meet thecurrent market expectations for 2005. Since August 2005, Delling Group has won 20 new customers across a range ofsectors and these include among others, Ogilvy, Norway, the large internationaladvertising agency; Eurobet, a European on-line poker company and ScheringPlough, the global, research-based pharmaceutical company. Integrated branding Delling's recent acquisition of three companies and their respective brands hasrequired a brand rationalisation exercise in order to bring the tradingcompanies - Butler Systems, Azzets and Depicta - under the one Group brand.Accordingly, Delling's subsidiaries will now trade, with immediate effect, underthe "Delling" brand. This exercise supports Delling's strategy of being an integrated marketingsupport services Group. With the benefit of only one trading name, Dellingexpects its own marketing work to be considerably simplified, which in itselfshould generate various cost related benefits. Geir Lolleng, Chief Executive of Delling Group, commented:"On the back of our strong sales force and with a firm conviction that theDelling offering represents the best value for the customer, I am pleased toannounce an increase in both the Group's turnover and our client base. I am alsopleased that we are now marketing our services under one brand. I am confidentthat these developments will further accelerate our growth as we continue tobuild the size and scope of the Company." ENDS Delling Group Plc Tel: 020 7484 6160 Aksel Bratvedt, Executive ChairmanGeir Lolleng, Chief Executive Binns & Co PR LtdPeter Binns/Tarquin Edwards Tel: 020 7786 9600 Notes to Editors: Re: ContractsAs far as contracts are concerned in Delling's market, it is usual for customersto work on a non-contractual basis and with new orders being placed for eachindividual assignment. Customer loyalty however, tends towards the clientrelationship being maintained across a number of years. Delling has placedconsiderable emphasis on changing this non-contractual way of doing business andit sees good opportunities for the conversion of un-contracted customers on tocontracts, on a two to five year basis. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange