Investor News

04 April 2015

Trading Update to 31 March 2015

Milestone Group PLC

(“Milestone” or the “Company”)

Trading update to 31 March 2015

Milestone, the AIM quoted (AIM: MSG) provider of digital media and technology solutions is pleased to present a trading update for the 6 months to 31 March 2015.

The Company has now begun generating brand new revenue streams through the “Passion Project”. Since 1 October 2014 it has recorded revenues of £385,000 through sponsorship and corporate membership in the project and has attracted 9 fee-paying members of the Passion Project. The project will now also start to generate additional revenues by successfully placing young people into work. According to the programmes industry partners these revenues are expected to scale between £2 – 5k per successful candidate along with other significant digital and advertising revenue opportunities.

In addition the Company has generated circa £50,000 of revenues for successfully delivering “Disorder” magazine employment and industry skills training for young unemployed people and our digital media unit, Relative, is continuing to grow.

The board is pleased with this progress and has better visibility of future earnings, which come from a more diverse portfolio of opportunities than in previous years. The directors believe that the Company will be able to build on these opportunities and deliver meaningful revenues for the Group in the next year.

Passion Project 

Following the formal launch of the Passion Project on 10 December 2014, momentum continues to build for the Company’s youth engagement programme. The Passion Project has started to enroll Corporate Members, and has so far signed 9 new members. It is anticipated that the Passion Project will have approximately 100 companies onboard by 31 October 2015. By sharing PR and networking opportunities with our Corporate Members, the reach of the Passion Project will continue to grow ensuring that the young people we engage will have access to appropriate training and employment opportunities.

Alongside the Milestone Foundation, Milestone has started to identify and enroll members of specific sectors into working groups that will oversee the Passion Project’s operational and governance policy. These working groups will provide the necessary industry and sector know-how, to ensure that the Passion Project focuses on delivering what is required by the target audience of young people and associated service providers.

As well as working towards helping young people, the Passion Project is already providing new business opportunities for the other activities of the Milestone Group. These include corporate emotional intelligence training with a top tier law firm, the provision of digital design work, consulting services and Corporate and Social Responsibility (CSR) campaigns for several new corporate members as well as the provision of a mobile training solution to a key strategic training partner. Alongside these additional income streams for the Group, the Passion Project is also attracting major sponsors for various parts of the Project.

Training

As previously announced, Milestone has its own training products, including Winning in the Game of Life (“WITGOL”), which are being introduced into UK schools. The Company recently showcased WITGOL at the BETT exhibition in London and the Education Show in Birmingham, gaining interest from key contacts. Discussions are occurring with a number of prospective distribution partners and sponsors, which could provide an opportunity for 20 of the pilot schools to commence the programme.

As well as a stand-alone offering, the Passion Project also contains an education and training framework that has been designed to map the individual’s personal and professional development. It is entitled The Ladder. One of the Passion Project’s key areas of focus is the development of relationships with training providers who can offer access to market leading programmes and training methods, to accompany and compliment its own training products.

Mobile Business Solutions

The modular framework of our platform continues to pay dividends, allowing us to meet the varied cases presented by new clients without having to undertake major software changes. In recent months, we have provided solutions as varied as quotation administration for a building management organisation, through to training and personnel management for the Green Skills Partnership (as announced on 11 March 2015). The transport industry continues to provide opportunities and we will shortly begin a pilot to provide an incident management tool for a major rail operating company.

The marketing and sales strategy is underway following the production of new collateral and a revised product website. The email marketing campaign continues and we have had a number of enquiries and request for proposals from online marketing portals, as well as referrals from the Passion Project.

Disorder Magazine

As well as re-launching Disorder Magazine, Milestone, through its subsidiary, Relative, has created a new website: www.disordermagazine.com. Through the Milestone Foundation, the team is accessing grant funding to allow them to increase reach, relevance and value for young talent. Working with creative colleges throughout the UK and in conjunction with the Passion Project and their educational advisers, Disorder is now working to establish work-based learning as part of their course requirements.

As a result of these recent activities, Disorder is now receiving commercial enquiries from Vogue Italia, London Fashion Week and a number of UK colleges and brands.

Relative

Relative, our digital media in-house agency, continues to attract new clients as well as building on existing relationships, including Sudler and Hennessey (a division of the Young and Rubicam Group), generating a regular flow of new opportunities and revenues. The team continues to work alongside the Income Protection Task Force for their 7 Families initiative and have been commissioned to work on the design and build of an online social media and engagement piece, aimed at highlighting the effects of long-term disabilities or illnesses. The reach of this initiative has exceeded the clients’ expectations with a combined audience of 11 million across digital, print and social media over a period of 8 months.

In addition to this self-created work, Relative are receiving a number of new business opportunities from the Passion Project, including a CSR campaign for a top tier management consultancy, a fashion exhibition for a large developer and a possible rebrand of a new corporate client.

Deborah White, CEO, commented: 

“We are delighted with the continued progress that is now clearly demonstrable across all sectors of the business as well as the level of interest being shown by the marketplace in general for both the Passion Project and our associated products and services. This is helping to drive the development of new revenues and raise the profile of the Group. This activity is very much in keeping with our vision to build a media business that is both attractive for its shareholders and for the community at large.

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