Our company at a glance
THE LEADING PRIVATE
LABEL SUPPLIER
OF HOUSEHOLD AND
PERSONAL CARE
PRODUCTS IN EUROPE
McBRIDE plc McBRIDE plc
McBRIDE HOUSE McBRIDE HOUSE
PENN ROAD PENN ROAD
BEACONSFIELD BEACONSFIELD
BUCKINGHAMSHIRE BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
HP9 2FY HP9 2FY
UNITED KINGDOM UNITED KINGDOM
TEL: +44 (0) 1 TEL: +44 (0) 1 494 60 70 50 494 60 70 50
FAX: +44 (0) 1 FAX: +44 (0) 1 494 60 70 55 494 60 70 55
www.mcbride.co.uk www.mcbride.co.uk
McBRIDE plc
McBRIDE HOUSE
PENN ROAD
BEACONSFIELD
BUCKINGHAMSHIRE
HP9 2FY
UNITED KINGDOM
TEL: +44 (0) 1 494 60 70 50
FAX: +44 (0) 1 494 60 70 55
www.mcbride.co.uk
Annual report 2003 Annual report 2003
THE LEADING PRIVATE
LABEL SUPPLIER
OF HOUSEHOLD AND
PERSONAL CARE
PRODUCTS IN EUROPE
THE LEADING PRIVATE
LABEL SUPPLIER
OF HOUSEHOLD AND
PERSONAL CARE
PRODUCTS IN EUROPE 00
Private Label household 
and personal care products
Flexible scale. T rust. Reliability . 
Responsibility . Continuous improvement.
These are the core company attributes 
that are helping McBride grow its position 
as Europe’ s leading manufacturer of Private
Label household and personal care products –
attributes that we focus on in all our 16
factories across seven European countries,
helping McBride consistently meet the ever-
increasing demands of Europe’ s most
successful retailers.
They’re the attributes that are helping us
achieve our strategic goals for growth. 
They are the force behind McBride winning
the ultimate accolade of ‘Best Private Label
Supplier’ in the 2003 Grocer Magazine survey .
They’re what make McBride the first choice
partner for Europe’ s leading retailers.
Read more about them on pages 14-23 
of this report – and see how McBride is
working to deliver growth.
39 Balance sheet
40 Consolidated cash flow statement
40 Reconciliation of net cash flow to 
movement in net debt
41 Consolidated statement of total 
recognised gains and losses
41 Reconciliation of movements in 
shareholders’ funds
42 Notes to the financial statements
59 Five-year financial summary
59 Financial calendar
60 Group directory/advisors
Contents
02 Financial and commercial highlights
05 Chairman’ s statement
06 Chief executive’ s review
10 Finance director’ s report
12 Directors
14 Achieving flexible scale
16 Building our business on trust
18 Ensuring constant reliability
20 Enabling continuous improvement
22 Responsibility = sustainable development
24 Directors’ report
37 Independent Auditors’ Report
38 Consolidated profit and loss account
RESULTATE
LIEFERN
RESULTATEN
DIE OPLEVEREN
DEGLI RISULTATI
CHE RENDONO
DOSAŽENÉ
VÝSLEDKY
HOZNI AZ 
EREDMÉNYT
REALIZACJA
ZAŁOZ
˙
ONYCH
CELÓW
DES RÉSULTATS
QUI 
RAPPORTENT
CONSIGUIENDO
RESULTADOS
DELIVERING
RESULTS
01
McBride plc
The market leaders 0
100
200
300
400
500
600
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
2003 2002
228.5
272.9
505.0
228.5
251.3
484.0
UK
Europe
4.2
Rest of World
3.6
+
4.3%
+
45.6%
*
Financial and commercial highlights
Group turnover was 
£505.0 million
+
19.2%
+
45.7%
*
Group operating profit 
(before goodwill amortisation)
was £31.1 million
Earnings per share was 
10.2p per share
+
38.1 %
T otal dividends for the year
were 2.9p per share
Pre-tax profit was 
£26.2 million
2003 2002
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
433.9
71.1
505.0
415.2
68.8
484.0
Personal care
Household
2003 2002
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
26.9
4.2
31.1
22.4
3.7
26.1
Personal care
Household
2003 2002
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
18.0
13.1
31.1
16.1
10.0
26.1
UK
Europe
> Group turnover increased 
£21.0 million driven by the growth 
of Continental European core
household and personal care retail
sales. UK sales maintained their 2002
level while the overall reduction in
contract manufacturing sales partially
offset the gains in Europe.
> Group operating profit 
improved £5.0 million to £31.1
million (+19.2%) before goodwill
amortisation as the result of higher
sales, lower operating costs and
improving efficiency .
> Underlying cash flow generation
was £37.8 million after making
dividend payments in July 2002 and
January 2003 totalling £3.7 million.
Despite a £4.0 million adverse effect
of exchange, net debt reduced to
£61.1 million. A decrease equivalent
to one third of the Group’ s debt as 
at June 2002.
Commercial highlights 
United Kingdom
> UK sales unchanged in value terms 
as the increase in sales volume, following 
a series of successful sales promotions, was
offset by continuing price erosion resulting
from strong competition between the 
UK retailers.
> The Group‘s focus on improvements 
in manufacturing efficiency and better
controls over working capital delivered a
12.0% improvement in operating profit
with a corresponding improvement 
in cash flow.
Commercial highlights
Continental Europe
> Continental European sales increased 
by 8.6%. This success was driven by the
Group’ s strong Private Label sales growth 
in Spain, Germany , The Netherlands 
and France.
> The combination of higher sales and
operating cost improvements resulted in 
an impressive 31.6% improvement to
Continental European operating profit.
UK T urnover and profit by origin 
(continuing business)
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003
T urnover (£m) 265.1 255.9 243.4 243.1 235.8
Operating profit (£m) 21.6 16.6 13.3 15.0 16.8
Margin 8.1% 6.5% 5.5% 6.2% 7.1%
Sales in the UK maintained at 2002 levels
(continuing business)
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003
T urnover (£m) 258.1 251.0 238.3 228.5 228.5
Change -3.2% -2.8% -5.1% -4.1% 0.0%
Continental Europe turnover and profit by origin 
(continuing business)
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003
T urnover (£m) 231.7 222.4 227.9 240.9 269.2
Operating profit (£m) 12.9 13.3 6.4 9.8 12.9
Margin 5.6% 6.0% 2.8% 4.1% 4.8%
Growth in sales to Continental Europe 
1999 2000 2001 2002 2003
T urnover (£m) 232.9 223.0 228.9 251.3 272.9
Growth 18.2% (4.3)% 2.6% 9.8% 8.6%
02
Private Label household 
and personal care products
03
McBride plc
The market leaders
T urnover by product group (£m) T urnover by destination (£m)
0
2
4
6
8
02/03 98/99 99/00 00/01 01/02
6.2
5.4
5.1
6.4
4.7
02/03 98/99 99/00 00/01 01/02
(61.1)
(94.9)
(93.2)
(115.0)
(86.3)
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
Return on sales (%)
before goodwill amortisation
Net debt (£m)
Operating profit by product group (£m)
before goodwill amortisation
Operating profit by origin (£m)
before goodwill amortisation
Before taking £15.8m write off of goodwill 
in the joint venture in the 2002 results.
* 04
Private Label household 
and personal care products
Chairman’ s statement
The Group has achieved outstanding
results, in a year when the industry
has experienced its usual competitive
pressures. The strength of our
business emanates from the
consistency and relevance of our
strategy: focus on Private Label
household and personal care,
innovate, support and develop with
our major customers, emphasis on
customer service and maintaining
industry leading management skills
and experience. All elements of the
strategy have contributed to this
year’ s strong performance.
Key Strategic Strengths
The Group has achieved outstanding results, 
in a year when the industry has experienced 
its usual competitive pressures. Our
commitment to innovative solutions across 
all facets of the business has again ensured
success. This contrasts with many of our UK 
and Continental European competitors, some
of whom have struggled to achieve acceptable
performances. The strength of our business
emanates from the consistency and relevance 
of our strategy: focus on Private Label
household and personal care, innovate, 
support and develop with our major 
customers, emphasis on customer service 
and maintaining industry leading management
skills and experience. All elements of the
strategy have contributed to this year’ s 
strong performance. 
Recently we were again at the forefront of
product innovation when we launched laundry
powder in soluble sachets in the UK.
Continued Improvement in Performance
The programmes of action that were introduced
by the executive team in 2001 continue to
produce improvements in performance. During
the year , all the businesses have been focussed
on maximising profitable sales supported by
improvements in the key areas of
manufacturing efficiency , productivity , asset
utilisation and working capital management.
The success of these actions is demonstrated 
by record sales, increased margins and cash
generation that has enabled us to reduce
borrowing to the lowest level in seven years.
It is pleasing that this improved all round
performance continues to be recognised in 
the recovery of our share price which currently
stands at 109.5 pence per share as at 10
September 2003. We see no reason at present
why the improvement should not continue in
the current financial year .
Aerosol Products Limited (APL)
APL the UK aerosol joint venture, based at Hull, 
had a successful year by applying the same
basic strategy and improvement plan as the
main business. Following last year’ s operational
and financial restructuring the management 
has worked hard, achieving a turnaround 
from loss to an operating profit. 
With customer confidence at higher levels, 
new business has been gained and new
opportunities continue to arise.
05
McBride plc
The market leaders
Lord Sheppard
Chairman
Customer Relationships
Being a supplier of Private Label means that 
we are directly affected by the economic and
competitive forces experienced by retailers. 
We are only able to succeed by being more
responsive to and, when necessary , proactive
with, our retail customers than other suppliers.
Recognition of our success was referred 
to last year when McBride UK won 
The Grocer magazine’ s ’Best in Class’ for a
second consecutive year . This year we went 
two better , and were awarded ‘Best in Class’ 
for a record third time. In addition McBride 
was voted The Grocer’ s inaugural Gold Medal 
for Own Label excellence.
Workforce
It is with pride and gratitude that I give
recognition to the outstanding commitment 
of our staff during the year .
Additional Non-Executives
As indicated in last year’ s Annual Report, we
announced the intention to strengthen the
Board. Following the recent press
announcement, Christine Bogdanowicz-Bindert
and Robert Lee have been appointed to the
Board of McBride plc as non-executive directors
from 1 September 2003. They bring with them
considerable expertise and I would like to take
this opportunity to welcome them to the 
Board of McBride plc.
Dividend Policy
McBride plc is committed to making
progressive, sustainable annual increases to 
the dividend paid to shareholders, taking
account of the medium-term capital
requirements of the business.
Dividends will be paid in relation to the 
interim and final results of each financial year in
May and November respectively . It is anticipated 
that the interim dividend will be approximately
one third of the total dividend for a year .
Current T rading
Since year end trading has further improved 
in line with expectations and the outlook
remains encouraging.
The Group continues to be the most
comprehensively positioned EU supplier 
not only of household and personal care
products but of any Private Label product
category sold through Grocers.
Managing powerful manufacturing and distribution 
resources across a continent, within a dynamic, fast-moving
company culture, is enabling McBride to stretch its lead as
Europe’ s leading Private Label specialist. It’ s our ability to meet
our customers’ demands across Europe that makes McBride 
the preferred partner of so many major retailers. 06
Private Label household 
and personal care products
Chief Executive ’ s review
T otal sales at £505 million were a record for our core household
and personal care business and grew by 4.3%. The share of
sales outside the UK again represented more than half the
Group’ s turnover at 55% versus 53% in the previous year . At
£31.1 million the Group’ s operating profit before goodwill
amortisation and the joint venture was up 19.2%.
It is pleasing to report that the Group’ s sales,
profit and cash generation have continued 
the improvements of last year particularly
benefiting from a strong Continental European
performance. The Group’ s inherent strength is
its combination of scale of operations and the
unparalleled experience of the management
team. We have reinforced our Europe wide
market leadership by a combination of sales
volume growth, cost controls, increased
profitability and improved cash generation.
The Company’ s objective is to improve
shareholder value by growing profits whilst 
at the same time reducing debt in the existing 
core businesses. The targets for sales growth
and major improvement in working capital
levels, are underpinned by specific country , 
site, product and customer targets.
Sales
T otal sales at £505 million were a record for our
core household and personal care business and
grew by 4.3%. The share of sales outside the
UK again represented more than half the
Group’ s turnover at 55% versus 53% in the
previous year . Some help was given by the
stronger Euro but the underlying volume and
value growth in France and Spain were the
main sources of the increase in CE business.
Whilst the UK, as expected, maintained last
year’ s sales, the strategy to expand sales in CE
resulted in growth of 8.6%. Reported sales for
Poland were adversely affected by the Zloty’ s
weakness, although sales volume grew steadily .
Profit
At £31.1 million, the Group’ s operating profit
before goodwill amortisation and the joint
venture was up 19.2%. The competitive
pressures between retailers and their
undoubted buying power again caused selling
price deflation. The Group’ s strategy to focus 
on all variable and fixed costs to strengthen
margins in these circumstances, has again, led
to improved results. However , the marketing,
logistical and operational excellence of the
businesses is the best safeguard for future
results and customer service levels are the 
daily benchmarks of performance for all 
sites and functions.
Cash
Management’ s rigourous approach to 
raising our performance in the management 
of cash ensured success and has given two clear
benefits; interest costs were reduced and the
level of borrowings are less than half those at
December 2000. We continue to benefit from
high levels of capital investment in the 1990’ s.
Whilst capital expenditure was lower it 
reflected the on-going levels following the
completion two years ago of several major
projects. A key area of cash improvement after 
balancing debtors and creditors has been the
management of stock. Here the availability 
of detailed information for all finished goods
and raw material/packaging items from the 
SAP integrated systems, is helping to improve
controls thereby reducing stock levels and
improving customer service.
Stewardship
In the Finance Director’ s review that follows 
the Group’ s financial performance will be
described. It is, however , a feature of the
business that all sites, countries, product 
groups and increasingly customers are regularly
measured for profitability , return on sales, cash
flow where relevant and ROACE. A recent in-
depth independent internal audit, which is still
in progress, confirms the proper management 
of business risk throughout the Group.
T rade Relationships
In Private Label we are only as good as our
customers tell us and that is by the amount 
of business they award to us. In terms of
customer satisfaction it is very pleasing to
everybody involved in the UK business to have
achieved two outstanding ‘firsts’ last year . For 
a record breaking third consecutive year the 
UK was voted by buyers as ‘Best in Class’ for 
the household goods sector in The Grocer
magazine survey . This was followed in June by 
the Gold Award for Private Label excellence 
in competition between ten product 
sectors. The buyers voted McBride better 
than many well-known food, drink and 
non-food companies.
Whilst there are no equivalent awards in Europe
we do conduct surveys using independent
sources and the position of McBride as the
leading company in household and personal
care Private Label is well recognised, as
evidenced by the sales growth.
07
McBride plc
The market leaders
UK 
The market continues to be very competitive 
as the large retailers compete on all aspects 
of their customer offer . Last year saw Private
Label sales continue to grow their share of 
the household products sector as the retailers
increased their focus on building store traffic
and improving store margins.
Despite this growth, Private Label share 
in our sector still remains below that for ‘all
commodity’ groups. This represents a significant
opportunity for our customers and McBride to
grow Private Label sales to our mutual benefit.
It is therefore encouraging that all Private Label
household products held a combined share of
23.7% with strong performance in McBride
core categories of laundry liquid sachets
+12.3%, laundry tablets +1.8%, auto
dishwashing tablets +3.3%, washing up liquids
and toilet care improving share by +0.9%. Our
business in the UK has leading shares in all these
categories with modest improvements in sales.
The personal care business had an excellent
year . Against a continuing backdrop of a
difficult market, initiatives were taken to
develop the Private Label and Minor Brand
offers. Our activities are focused on hair care,
bath and shower products and oral care. 
During the year Private Label grew it’ s volume
share of the market whilst the value share 
was marginally lower resulting in slightly
reduced sales. 
It is against this market background that our
overall sales in the UK remained unchanged 
at £228.5 million. 
Having successfully established our position 
in the liquid laundry sachets sector , the business
has once again been at the forefront of
innovations with the launch of powder pods.
The initiative continues the development of
offering the consumer the convenience of
soluble sachets combined with the cleaning
power of laundry powders in an easy to 
use format. Initial sales of the powder pods 
are encouraging. 
The UK personal care business continued the
improvements in its operational performance
established last year as well as gaining new
retailer brand contracts. In addition to the
successful roll out of SAP , we are pleased 
with the Bradford site which delivered a 
strong performance.
APL 
Last year we reported that the aerosol joint
venture in the UK had been restructured and
although it was early days for the new phase of
the joint venture we were pleased to report that
the losses had been stemmed. It is therefore
particularly pleasing to report that our optimism
was justified and rewarded with a contribution
of £0.9 million (McBride share, £0.5 million) 
at the operating profit level. 
Sales of £30.1 million (McBride share £15.1
million) were in line with expectations and the
new management team have continued their
excellent work in the control of the cost base 
and are continually working to improve its sales
and operating performance. Customer service
levels are vastly improved despite some
persistent supplier performance difficulties.
Continental Europe
Our Continental European business (McBride
CE) sells in all member States of the European
Community in mainland Europe, with its head
office located in Belgium and production sites in
five member states. Last year we reported that
retailer consolidation led by the French multiples
and some German and Dutch retailers was
creating the right environment for Private Label
to grow.
In the most recent review of the European
Private Label market undertaken by 
AC Nielsen on behalf of the PLMA (Private 
Label Manufacturers Association) it was
reported that Private Label continues to grow
and for the first time, now accounts for more
than one in every four products sold in the 
UK, Germany , Belgium and Spain.
The report showed that the volume share of
Private Label products across all commodities in
2002 was 40.8% in the UK (-0.2%), Germany
33.2% (+2.2%), a record 27.3% in Spain
(+2.7%), France 24.7% (+0.4%), Italy 13.3%
(+0.3%), while The Netherlands and Belgium
fell slightly to 21.1% (-0.4%) and 36.5% 
(-0.2%) respectively . 
Mike Handley
Chief Executive
Minor Brands
The UK business continued its niche brand
development programme which saw Surcare, the
laundry products range, sales up 24% for the year .
This year has seen the relaunch of Clean’N’Fresh 
our value brand of household cleaners and the
launch of Captivate a personal care range.
These niche brands have a key role in the
development of sales to the convenience and
independent trade sectors where the lower 
absolute levels of volume inhibit Private Label
growth. By offering a range of value brands of 
good quality we believe there is a mutual
opportunity especially as some of the larger 
retail groups expand into this sector . 
The Grocer Gold Award for best Own Label 
supplier 2003 Central Europe growth potential
with retailer development
Customer service, innovation and
speed to market
Roll-out of winning formulas
Long-term relationships
UK and Continental Europe leadership
Manufacturing scale, efficiency 
and expertise
Market and consumer understanding
Leverage of McBride 
manufacturing capabilities
Private Label leadership
Niche brand development
Contract manufacturing
Household and personal care focus
Grow sales
Grow profits
Reduced debt
Increase shareholder value
08
Private Label household 
and personal care products
Chief Executive’ s review continued
“These results demonstrate the continuing strength of
McBride. The market remains competitive but sales gains in
Continental Europe, and continuing operational improvements
across the Group have improved profitability . Cash flow
remains strong and a sudstantial reduction in debt has been
achieved. Since the year end, trading has been satisfactory .”
Strategy
In Continental Europe, McBride’ s focus is 
on growth in all countries especially France 
and Spain. 
We entered Spain eight years ago through
acquisition and it is now our fourth largest
market with significant growth opportunities.
Similarly McBride entered The Netherlands
through acquisition however it is a more
developed retail market and growth is 
therefore more difficult.
In France massive progress has been made
following a series of small acquisitions to
expand the product offer . Significant
development of the relationships with major
French retailers has underpinned this growth.
McBride has been a significant supplier to a
number of German retailers outside their
domestic market for many years. Indeed two
German retailers are already in the Group’ s 
T op T en customers. Germany is the most 
recent market McBride has started to develop; 
a sales office was established three years ago
that is now winning contracts to supply the
German retailers in their domestic market.
In the growing McBride CE market our reported
sales were £272.9 million up almost 8.6% in
Sterling with sales in local currency up 2.5%
year-on-year . Sales in Spain and Germany
showed impressive 37.4% and 36.0% growth
in local currency respectively while The
Netherlands improved 6.1% and France our
second largest market grew by 5.2%.
Intersilesia’ s sales were impacted by the 
economic downturn in Poland and yet 
ended marginally up on the previous year 
in local currency . The main consequences of 
the weak Zloty were inflation on raw materials 
and imported products, the latter stimulated 
a 23% increase in local production volume. 
By European standards Intersilesia has a state- 
of-the-art facility and is undergoing value
engineering of its cost base to further 
improve its competitive position. McBride 
has made excellent progress in both the
Hungarian and the Czech Republics with 
sales up 50% and 140% respectively . From 
the small 1999 acquisition in Poland followed
by substantial expansion of production and
warehousing McBride now has a solid
foundation from which it can expand its 
Central European business.
International – Rest of World
McBride International has responsibility for all
markets outside the EU with the majority of its
sales in Central & Eastern Europe, the core of
which is Intersilesia in Poland. Rest of world
covers all markets outside Europe. Against the
backdrop of a strong Euro and the impact of
the Middle East crisis, sales declined by 14%.
Operations
The Group is the most comprehensively
positioned European supplier not only of
household and personal care products but of
any Private Label product category sold through
Grocers. This strength is becoming increasingly
recognised by our customers especially given
our reputation for Private Label development
and expertise in manufacture and supply .
Underpinning our commercial strategies is 
a network of 16 factories, in seven countries
including the APL joint venture in the UK.
During the year the closure of the Industrial 
and Institutional products factory on the
Estaimpuis site in Belgium was announced. 
This non-core activity comprised two major
customers who are in the process of 
re-sourcing their requirements with full 
co-operation between us. All financial
consequences of this small closure have 
been reflected in these results. 
Production sites focus on product technologies
and we therefore have 2 laundry powder units,
2 aerosol units, 2 personal care units and 10
household liquids units. The number of
household liquids sites is a direct consequence
of the need to avoid the transport costs of
shipping products over large distances.
During the last 10 years £186.6 million has
been invested in capital in addition to various
acquisitions. Our plants are well invested and
acheive world class standards. Investment in
SAP across the Group is enabling the business
to focus on operational performance. This
received further impetus during the year as 
we improved measurement and benchmarking
matrices based on Group wide common
nomenclature and definitions. This programme
focused on capacity utilisation, productivity ,
efficiency of mixing, filling and blow moulding
and will continue to strengthen the Group’ s 
cost effectiveness into the future.
09
McBride plc
The market leaders
McBride’ s scale of business in terms of 
volume, complexity , tighter lead times and
speed of change can now be managed on an
integrated basis through SAP . The benefits from
investing in information systems are coming
through and will continue to flow going forward.
Business Development
One of the main areas of business development
identified last year was the opportunity
presented by several of our niche brands. The
results have been very encouraging with Surcare
sales up 24%, UK household brands overall
were up 9% and UK personal care branded
sales were up 10%, McBride International
undertook a major review of its brand offer
including a number of relaunches.
The second area, contract manufacturing has
been slower to develop but progress has been
made in introducing McBride capabilities to a
number of new customers with good prospects
for longer-term volume. 
Purchasing
The Group Purchasing Director and his team
have been able to improve our competitiveness
by building relationships and tendering business
where opportunities were identified. A joint
technical/purchasing project to identify areas of
Group synergies was started during the year .
Planning
Last year we reported that a Group of over 
fifty of our most senior managers attended a
workshop to review our markets, customers
and competitors in the context of our own
competencies, strengths and weaknesses. 
This strategic planning review has formed 
the foundation of our business plan which 
set the basis for the Group’ s recovery and
growth parameters.
We are now in the second year of the plan,
having achieved a number of key goals in terms
of sales growth outside the UK, improvement in
profits, working capital, cash flow and net debt
reduction. These improvements have been
realised through organic growth and internal
cost control. The next phase of our planning
process is to investigate the opportunities
available to McBride to further accelerate
growth. This will involve the examination of
expansion into new geographic markets and 
in-filling product ranges whether organically 
or by acquisition.
Social and Ethical Policy
It has always been the Group’ s practice to set
standards of performance and behaviour in the
way we run the business. This goes beyond
financial and operational aspects into how we
behave with those in whose communities we
operate and how we treat each other as
colleagues. This year we have brought together
all our best practices and formalised them as
policy . It is an area where we will endeavour to
improve our awareness and performance with,
we believe, positive commercial effects.
Many of our sites gain external recognition 
with Burnley and Intersilesia in Poland collecting
outside awards in these important areas. Our
approach is based upon the belief that “a safe
and clean working environment is a precursor
to efficiency” .
Health, Safety and Environment
The Group has well conceived and 
documented policies and procedures across 
the diverse businesses that operate in seven
countries with differing legal frameworks. In the
UK RoSPA is used to audit safety management,
and Investor in People is used to ensure our
approach to training and development is of
good professional standard. 
Sustainable Development
Not just a new in-phrase but a way of 
doing business is how we see Sustainable
Development. In all areas, whether it is vehicle
loads and fuel efficiency , energy utilisation,
packaging design/recyclability , production 
waste reduction, product design in the form 
of concentrated formulations or predetermined
dosage formats or many other areas, we see
Sustainable Development as the best approach
to cost effectiveness. This approach safeguards
both the future of the business and the
environment in which we operate.
As Board members of A.I.S.E. (The European
Detergents Industry Association), the Group
fully supports the Detergent Industry Charter on
Sustainable Development. 10
Private Label household 
and personal care products
Finance Director’ s report
Significant focus remains on not only improving profitability ,
but also cash generation. This is to reduce the level of debt
to achieve a more optimum capital structure and to improve
the rate of return on capital.
Pre-tax profit for the full year was £26.2 million,
a substantial improvement over the previous
year of £18.0 million before the write-off of
goodwill in the joint venture. This improvement
was backed by strong cash flows that reduced
debt by £33.8 million to £61.1 million. These
factors contributed to raise the pre-tax return 
on average capital employed from 15.0% 
to 19.6%.
Financial management reporting and
accounting has been harmonised throughout
the Group as well as strengthening the
measurement and comparability of operating
efficiency , asset utilisation and working capital.
This has been facilitated by the Group wide
information systems.
Between June 2002 and June 2003, the 
Euro appreciated against Sterling by nearly 7%. 
As over half the Group’ s activities are based in
Euro’ s, this currency movement has impacted
on the consolidated results for June 2003.
However , since the Group’ s UK operations 
have some direct costs that are denominated 
in Euro’ s, the overall effect of the stronger Euro
on the Group’ s operating profit and post-tax
profit is not significant. 
Overall, the Group experienced a second year 
of relatively stable raw material prices. 
Turnover grew by 4.3% to £505 million, 
aided by strong organic growth in the
Continental European business and a currency
translation effect from the strengthened Euro.
Improving operating efficiency lifted margins,
before goodwill amortisation, to 6.2% from
5.4% last year . 
Group operating profit therefore rose to £29.7
million (£24.8 million) whilst Group operating
profit before depreciation and goodwill
amortisation (EBITDA) increased to £53.0 million
from £44.7 million. The charge for depreciation
rose from £18.6 million to £21.9 million
reflecting work on reviewing the asset base. 
The Group’ s net interest charge for the year 
was £3.6 million, an improvement from last
year (2002 – £4.4 million) due to lower average
borrowings and some modest reductions in
interest rates. Group interest cover was 8.3x
compared to 5.7x last year . 
The taxation charge, under FRS19 that requires
a full provision for deferred tax, of £7.9 million
for the year equates to an effective rate of 
29% (2002 – 26%) based upon profits before
goodwill amortisation. This rate is still below 
the mainstream rate of tax in the countries 
in which the Group operates due to the
recognition of previously written off of ACT .
However , the effective tax rate is expected to
normalise over the next 2 years as this ACT
benefit is exhausted. 
During the year , the corporate structure 
of the Group was reorganised to maximise
utilisation of ACT and thereby reducing 
future taxation payments.
Capital expenditure, which in the full year
amounted to £8.5 million (2002 – £10.5
million) was incurred mainly on efficiency
improvement projects, new capacity and the
continued rollout of the SAP information
systems. This lower level of expenditure partly
results from the high level of previous year’ s
expenditure combined with a drive to increase
existing asset utilisation and efficiency across the
Group. It is expected that the level of capital
expenditure over the next few years will be
above the current year’ s level, close to the
average of the last three years.
Net debt improved significantly throughout the
year , falling from £94.9 million at June 2002 to
£61.1 million at the year-end despite adverse
exchange movements of £(4.0) million. This
strong performance was aided by significant
improvements in working capital and lower
capital expenditure. Cash flow per share, before
dividend payments, joint venture settlement and
exchange movements amounted to 23.4p
(2002 – 12.2p). 
During the year , the Group moved towards 
a more efficient capital structure to minimise 
the cost of capital. Gearing, interest cover and 
Net Debt/ EBITDA ratios all improved to 78%
(2002 – 147%), 8.3x (2002 – 5.7x) and 1.15
(2002 – 2.12) respectively . This directly impacted
the Group by reducing the cost of borrowing. 
The Group’ s pre-tax return on average capital
employed was 19.6%, up from 15.0% last 
year due to better margins and greater 
asset turnover . 
Treasury
The Group’ s debt requirement is financed
through a combination of two medium-term
committed bank facilities and a number of
uncommitted short-term facilities.
The committed facilities secure the Group’ s
medium-term funding requirements.
11
McBride plc
The market leaders
They comprise firstly , an £85 million amortising
revolving credit facility with an original 5-year
term, expiring in September 2007, with a
margin that fluctuates depending on financial
performance. The second facility is a structured
finance product for £20 million based on
purchasing receivables. This has a 30-month
committed term, expiring February 2005, 
and is on a fully non-recourse basis. The cash
generation of the Group means that the
continuing need for this facility will be 
reviewed as it approaches maturity . 
All Group operating companies have
uncommitted short-term facilities available in
their local currencies. These facilities, typically
with low margins, are to manage short-term
working capital and ensure that cash balances 
are not created locally when the Group as a
whole is in debt. 
All borrowings and foreign exchange activities
are undertaken as a result of underlying trade
transactions with approved financial
instruments. Currency exposures arising from
trade transactions are covered as they arise. No
transactions of a purely speculative nature are
undertaken.
Interest Rate Risk
The Group is financed by a combination of
retained earnings, receivables financing and
bank debt. The bank debt is denominated in
various currencies but mainly in Sterling and
Euros. Due to the healthy current and forecast
financial ratios of the Group combined with a
relatively flat yield curve on the swap market,
bank debt is held on a floating rate basis.
However , interest rate Costless Collars have
been implemented that will protect the Group
against any significant rise in interest rates over
the next 2 years. 
Foreign exchange risk on overseas borrowings is
monitored monthly and is substantially hedged
against the assets held in the same currencies. 
Aerosol Products Limited (APL)
Following the significant operational and
financial restructuring in June 2002, APL has
traded profitably and been cash generative
throughout the current year . APL ’ s cash
generation enabled a reduction in interest
bearing working capital and therefore interest
charges. APL remains a joint venture, held in the
Group Accounts at a net liability of £(1.7) million.
Systems
The Group’ s main financial and operating
systems, based on SAP applications, have
continued to be rolled out throughout the
Group. All the main operating units are now
running on these applications and there has
been little business interference during
migrations. The SAP systems cover most aspects
of manufacturing, stock, delivery and financial
control and are an integral part of the business.
They are an essential part of ensuring that
increasing demands, both financially and
operationally can be met.
Pension Accounting – FRS 17
Last year , due to rising costs and uncertainty
surrounding investment returns, the UK closed
its defined benefit pension scheme to new
employees; it was replaced by a defined
contribution scheme. The defined benefit
scheme currently has 579 active members, 
78 pensioners and 412 deferred members.
During the year , due to the increasing costs of
providing for pensions, the scheme changed 
the benefits that active members will be entitled
to receive on future service. Under FRS 17 rules,
the valuation of the scheme at the year-end
showed gross assets amounted to £32.9 million
(2002 – £35.6 million) and the liabilities to
£47.7 million (2002 – £42.3 million) leaving 
a shortfall of £10.4 million after taxation 
(2002 – £4.7 million) after taxation. An actuarial
valuation is currently underway; any material
shortfall will need to be made up over the
remaining service lives of the active members;
this is currently 11 years. 
Pension provision for our overseas colleagues 
is generally provided by their respective
governments out of general taxation. 
As such, the Group has no significant residual
forward exposure.
Earnings and Dividends
The weighted average number of shares 
in issue during the year was 177,639,197.
Earnings per share are 10.2p, an increase 
of 46% over last year’ s 7.0p (excluding last 
year’ s goodwill write off).
The recommended final year dividend, payable
on 28 November 2003, has been declared at
2.1p representing an increase of 50% over last
year . This final dividend together with the
interim dividend brings the full year to 2.9p, an
increase of 38% over last year’ s 2.1p.
Miles W Roberts
Finance Director
0
5
10
15
20
02/03 98/99 99/00 00/01 01/02
19.6
15.0
12.1
19.0
17.9
0
10
20
30
02/03 98/99 99/00 00/01 01/02
26.2
18.0
8.4
21.8
17.9
02/03 98/99 99/00 00/01 01/02
0
10
20
30
40
50
41.5
21.6
5.3
9.6
17.1
ROACE %
operating profit/opening + closing (net assets + 
net debt excluding joint venture)
Pre-tax profit (£m)
before taking £15.8 million write off of goodwill 
in the joint venture in the 2002 results
Cash generation (£m)
before dividend payments, acquisitions 
and refinancing the joint venture
02/03 98/99 99/00 00/01 01/02
3.2
2.9
2.7
3.0
3.9
0
1
2
3
4
5
Asset turnover
turnover/opening + closing (net assets + net debt 
excluding joint venture) 1 Lord Sheppard of Didgemere, KCVO, Kt
Chairman 
(aged 70)
Lord Sheppard has been non-executive
Chairman of the Company since the Buy-In in
1993 and from 1987 to 1996 he was Chairman
of Grand Metropolitan plc. He is currently
Chairman of GB Railways plc, OneClickHr plc
and the Unipart Group of Companies and
Chancellor of Middlesex University . He is also
President of London First, and Vice-President 
of Business in the Community .
2 Mike Handley 
Chief Executive and Deputy Chairman 
(aged 56)
Mike Handley led the management Buy-In of
McBride in 1993 and was previously Managing
Director of several divisions at RHM plc and a
divisional director of Cadbury Schweppes plc
prior to which he had held senior management
positions with Ciba Geigy (UK) Ltd and Reckitt 
& Colman. In 1998 he was appointed non-
executive Chairman of Macphie of Glenbervie
Ltd in Scotland and during 2001 was appointed
to the board of the A.I.S.E. (The European
Detergents Industry Association).
3 Miles W Roberts 
Group Finance Director
(aged 39)
Miles Roberts joined McBride in January 2002
as Group Finance Director from Costain Group
plc where he was also the Group Finance
Director . Previously he was the Finance 
Director of Three Valleys Water plc.
6 Christine A Bogdanowicz-Bindert 
Non-Executive Director
(aged 52)
Christine Bogdanowicz-Bindert joined 
the Board as a non-executive Director on 
1 September 2003. Christine is an experienced
financier born in Belgium, with joint Belgian/
Polish nationality . She has worked throughout
Europe and the USA for the last 30 years firstly
with the International Monetary Fund and 
then, until 1990, with Lehman Brothers Inc 
as a senior Vice President. From 1990 to 2003,
she has been the President of Bindert GmbH 
in Germany which specialises in
strategic/corporate planning issues for
multinationals in Poland and has held a 
number of non-executive directorships in 
Poland and the US.
7Robert A Lee 
Non-Executive Director
(aged 56)
Robert Lee joined the Board as a non-executive
Director on 1 September 2003. Robert has over
35 years experience in the petrochemical 
and allied industries. He was employed by 
Dow Chemicals for 28 years in a variety of
international senior management positions. 
In 1997, he joined a new management team
established at Octel Corp, enabling its successful
demerger to become an independent publicly
quoted petroleum additive company , listed on
the NYSE. 
12
Private Label household 
and personal care products
13
McBride plc
The market leaders
1234567
LEADING LEADING
                  THE MARKET THE MARKET
LEADING
         THE MARKET
4 Henri I T alerman
Non-Executive Director
(aged 47)
Henri T alerman has been a non-executive
Director of the company since May 1993. 
He was a founding partner of WR Capital
Partners, LLC. Until October 2000, he was a
Managing Director of Lehman Brothers Inc,
managing Lehman’ s principal investments. 
He is a member of several Boards of Directors 
of private companies in the US. 
5 Colin D Smith
Non-Executive Director 
(aged 56)
Colin Smith joined the Board as a non-executive
Director in April 2002. He was a main board
Director of Safeway plc for 15 years, the last 
6 years as Chief Executive and before that,
Finance Director . Colin is also Chairman of a
number of private companies. Mike Handley
August 2003
Agility flows through every level of this business – from the Boardroom,where
strategic decisions are communicated via short reporting lines for rapid implementation,
to the factory floor where production lines are switched between products easily,quickly
and cheaply. All on a scale that helps us meet any virtually customer or market need,
from the UK to eastern Europe.
centum qui decidit,inter perfectos ponetur
quotus arroget scriptor abhinc veteres
Si meliora vina poemata reddit,este inter
scire velim,chartis pretium quidem
Managing powerful manufacturing and distribution resources across a continent,
within a dynamic,fast-moving company culture,is enabling McBride to stretch
its lead as Europe’s leading Private Label specialist.It’s our ability to meet our
customers’ demands across Europe that makes McBride the preferred partner
of so many major retailers.
ACHIEVING
ACHIEVING
FLEXIBLE SCALE
FLEXIBLE SCALE
14
Private Label household 
and personal care products
15
McBride plc
The market leaders
Organising for increased production
A major reorganisation of our plastic bottle 
blow-moulding capabilities in Continental Europe
following a review of local demand and capacity
across sites and countries has enabled us to bring 
in-house the production of an additional 30 million
bottles in the first year alone.
Of equal importance, by realigning these 
resources closer to our customers, we are gaining
significant speed and efficiency benefits in meeting
their requirements.
This exercise, which involved moving between sites
four of our 80 Blow Moulding machines currently
installed throughout Continental Europe, has already
delivered significant cost-reductions with more in
years to come.
A story of achieving more for less.
Dishwash capacity expansion
McBride has been quick to invest in increased
manufacturing capacity for dishwash tablets, a 
sector whose value is growing by 11% each year .
McBride's latest investment in a state-of-the-art
additional tablet press to be installed at Barrow
continues our commitment to our customers in 
a growth market. This will also allow us to
accommodate any excess demand from our 
European manufacturing site at Moyaux.
Just as important, it gives us the flexibility to respond
more quickly than ever before to special customer
requirements for promotions and other activities,
helping them grow the share of their Private 
Label products.
Creating, developing, manufacturing, distributing and managing bespoke
portfolios of Private Label household and personal care products for many
retailers across a wide range of national markets poses an extraordinary
array of strategic and logistical challenges that very few organisations 
are able to rise to.
McBride does this by integrating it’ s considerable manufacturing
capabilities with an organisational agility that aims to meet customer
demand, regardless of time-scale or geography .
It’ s what we call ‘flexible scale’ .
Flexible scale means we have the levels of installed capacity that allow
production to be switched speedily , accurately and cost-effectively with
minimum downtime. It means we have the resources in place to meet
demand, immediately and efficiently in our core European markets. 
It means our lines of communication and information systems are geared
not just to respond to customer needs, but to anticipate and meet them
before they become urgent.
Our ability to provide flexible scale has not simply evolved – it has been
carefully planned and is under constant review and refinement as markets
change and new, better ways of operating and organising emerge.
It is one of the most important resources within McBride. It is what allows
our customers to trust us, to rely upon us to make a truly business-critical
contribution to their success, to achieve the innovation that keeps us
ahead of our competition and to play a responsible, wealth-generating
role in the communities where we operate.
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
45
50
UK
Germany
Spain
France
Belgium
Netherlands
Italy
2001
2002
Private Label share of the 
European dishwasher products market 
% volume share 16
Private Label household 
and personal care products
BUILDING OUR BUILDING OUR
BUSINESS BUSINESS
ON TRUST ON TRUST
BUILDING OUR
BUSINESS
ON TRUST
McBride’s business is growing, consolidating its leading
position in our core markets and expanding rapidly into
new ones. This growth is based on the trust that our
customers place in us to do the right thing in the right way 
at the right time, ultimately making us their Private Label
partner of choice.
17
McBride plc
The market leaders
Every supplier business is under pressure from its customers to reduce
costs, enhance quality , increase speed, maximise efficiency .
At McBride, we don’t wait to be asked. T o deserve and gain the trust 
of our customers – in new and established areas alike – we must take 
the initiative. 
Collaborative practices are therefore increasingly penetrating every aspect
of our organisation: integrating our business planning and information
systems with those of our customers’; and matching precisely our product
development, manufacturing and distribution activities with their
anticipated sales figures and promotional plans. Recent developments
mean that live data captured at the checkout is now being used to
determine stock levels at every stage of the supply chain from McBride’ s
suppliers to retailers’ shelves. 
We’re constantly enhancing performance – driving sales to improve
volumes and profit for our customers and ourselves, so gaining mutual
advantage and assured long-term, profitable relationships. This approach
now permeates every functional area and level of the organisation, from
the Board to teams and individuals out in the field, on the factory floor
and in administrative roles throughout the UK and Europe. 
When we received for a record third consecutive year The Grocer Survey’ s
’Best in Class’ award in household and personal care products, this was 
a tribute to our continued successful efforts to meet our customers’
demands for service level, product availability and strategic understanding.
2003 also saw even greater recognition, however , with the UK’ s leading
grocery retailers awarding McBride the ultimate accolade of best Own
Label supplier across all categories.
In Europe, new collaborative solutions are driving tremendous sales
growth, helping major retailers grasp important commercial opportunities
through increasing the proportion of Private Label goods they sell across
multiple international markets.
In Central Europe, we’ve created a world class manufacturing facility in
scale and quality to gain the trust of consumers and place Private Label
goods at the heart of the retail landscape in markets like Poland, the 
Baltic States, Russia and Ukraine.
Investing in new markets
In less than five years, McBride has turned
Intersilesia, formerly a £3 million turnover business
in Poland, into a regional manufacturing and
distribution hub that serves a massive and growing
market throughout Central Europe.
When combined with additional commercial
investments in Prague and Budapest, this approach
enables us to successfully support all customers
seeking to expand their share of Private Label in
these new growth markets.
The story doesn’t end there – future investments are
planned, using Intersilesia as a model of excellence
to create a second regional hub that will allow
further market development and drive shipping
costs to even lower levels.
Collaborating for Private Label growth
Through close collaboration with a major UK
customer , in 2002 McBride helped increase on-shelf
availability of its product lines from an already
impressive 96.5% to over 99%. This has brought
about both a significant improvement in sales
turnover and a major growth in the proportion of
Private Label products carried by the retailer .
These results were achieved through a combination 
of efficient collaborative supply chain management
and a deep understanding of consumer psychology .
forecasts,
production planning,
stock control,
distribution logistics
EPOS data
buying patterns,
volumes,
stock availability
Retailer
distribution centre
Retailer
Consumer
Distribution 
centre
Manufacturing
plant
Data sharing
and collaboration
Logistics
department
data flow
PRODUCT FLOW
DATA FLOW
Collaboration flow – integrating information systems Mike Handley
August 2003
18
Private Label household 
and personal care products
19
McBride plc
The market leaders
ENSURING
CONSTANT
RELIABILITY
ENSURING
CONSTANT
RELIABILITY
Customers work with and reward suppliers they can rely on.  
So achieving, maintaining and improving reliability is central 
to our strategy for sustainable growth and success, bringing 
the benefits of our investments in responsive, efficient and 
foolproof resources and systems to every retail customer, 
every time they deal with us.
McBride is Europe’ s leading Private Label supplier . More retailers rely 
on us than anyone else to provide the products they need to satisfy 
their customers – when, where, and in the quantities they require.
By maintaining and continually enhancing this reliability , we make a
dynamic contribution to their success, encouraging ever-increasing trust 
in the form of new and larger contracts with retailers throughout Europe.
This means we are constantly driving ourselves to strive for maximised 
on-shelf availability and a constant understanding of the market dynamics
that influence consumer demands and choices.
One of our most powerful tools is the ability to share a single vision with
customers, enabling us to manufacture and distribute for maximum sales
and minimum waste. In an environment of immense complexity and
change, where one in three of all our product lines is at any moment
being either introduced or discontinued, it’ s this commitment to
collaboration that ensures reliability .
We’re constantly enhancing performance – driving sales to improve
volumes and profit for our customers and ourselves, so gaining mutual
advantage and assured long-term, profitable relationships. 
Gold Award for best Own Label supplier
In the UK for an unprecedented third year running,
McBride was awarded ’Best in Class’ status in The
Grocer magazine survey of retailers opinion of their
Private Label household and personal care suppliers.
This was followed by McBride being awarded 
the Gold Award for best Own Label supplier . 
The award, introduced by The Grocer to recognise
business excellence, confirms Robert McBride as 
the number one Own Label supplier not just in
household and personal care but in the entire grocery
trade, including food and drink manufacturing. 
To win the award Robert McBride had to be
nominated and voted for by a majority of leading
supermarket chains in a secret ballot.
Developing Private Label
In two years, we have helped one major retailer
improve the proportion of Private Label laundry 
sales from 16.5% in 2002 to 23.3% in 2003 
resulting in a 49% increase in retail sales value.
Working closely with the customer , together we
devised a strategy to reverse a tide of gradual decline
in their laundry business. Initially redesigning all
packaging to gain a fresher , more vibrant look, 
we moved forward to make the range itself more 
relevant to today’ s consumer demands, with 
emphasis on the introduction of more tablets, 
sachets and improved powder products.
A truly collaborative effort including store-level 
EPOS data and supported by powerful marketing, 
this was a programme of change that underlined the
customer’ s commitment to its Private Label products.
The structure, organisation and attitude of the business underpin this
ability . We have already achieved much in adopting the standards that
ensure we continue to meet customer requirements, through continuous
improvement across the whole management process.
In Europe, we achieved at Group level ISO 9001 V2000 certification. 
This includes the head office of McBride CE at Estaimpuis, our factories 
at Ieper , Estaimpuis and Sallent, and our distribution centres at Ieper 
and Guesnian.
We are on schedule for our factories in Moyaux, Rosporden and Solaro 
to join the certification by 2004. With Breda and Etain achieving it before
the end of the year , we are ensuring the structure is in place for continued
reliability throughout all areas of the organisation.
Intersilesia in Poland has ISO 9001 V2000 and ISO 14001 certification 
and in the UK currently 4 of our factories Middleton, Burnley , Bampton
and Hull (aerosols joint venture) have ISO 9001 V2000 approval. 
2003 2002
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
7.6
5.1
Laundry tablets
Liquid sachets
Traditional liquids
Other laundry
Laundry powders
Improvement in Private Label laundry retail sales (£m)
Mike Handley picks up The Grocer Gold Award for
best Own Label supplier , with Jeremy Vine (left) and
editor of The Grocer Julian Hunt (right).
ISO 9001 V2000
In Europe we have achieved at Group level ISO 
V2000 certification. This includes the head office 
of McBride CE at Estaimpuis, our factories at Ieper ,
Estaimpuis and Sallent. ISO 9001 V2000 has also
been obtained in 4 UK factories Middleton, Burnley ,
Bampton and Hull as well as in Intersilesia, Poland. Mike Handley
August 2003
New products, new methods, new thinking – 
McBride never stands still. This is one reason 
why our record in new product development 
is the envy of our main competitors – but our 
culture of continuous improvement extends 
into every aspect of the company, making 
innovation the driving force behind our 
internal systems and practices too.
       ENABLING       ENABLING
CONTINUOUS CONTINUOUS
     IMPROVEMENT     IMPROVEMENT
       ENABLING
CONTINUOUS
     IMPROVEMENT
20
Private Label household 
and personal care products
21
McBride plc
The market leaders
What makes McBride stand out from its Private Label competitors is our
consistent efficiency and speed to market with successful new products.
Whether inspired by customer demand, by small niche products that we
take to mass market, by our own marketing instincts or by researching
successes overseas, our record of being first to market with innovative
new solutions in household and personal care goods is second to none.
Part of our formula for success is to know what we’re good at – and 
then improve on it. In short, we are committed to focussing on areas 
of greatest return, for ourselves and for our customers.
It’ s thinking like this that has resulted during 2002 in the creation and
development of new and extended product lines and categories, enabling
our customers through shared innovation to expand the proportion of
Private Label products they sell.
However , our ability to innovate extends far beyond the creation 
of new products – this is simply the visible result of unconstrained, 
creative thinking throughout the organisation, and at every level in 
the supply chain. 
This is why we’ve developed a culture of continuous improvement
throughout McBride, adopting a systematic approach to solving 
problems and generating new ideas for cost, speed and quality 
benefits that we can share with our customers. 
Fresh thinking ensures resources are where we need them to be, and 
that our information systems and lines of communication add value 
to our business and those of our customers.
Communication and sharing of ideas is vital across the whole business as
well as within national markets. Joint co-ordination meetings are held
between marketing, technical and purchasing teams to achieve greater
innovation, pursue joint development opportunities, improving our speed
to market.
Our people are constantly encouraged to contribute their ideas and
creativity to new solutions, where we can swiftly make investments that
exploit the emerging potential of new consumer growth markets.
That’ s the McBride culture.
Continuing laundry developments
By taking sachet technology and integrating it 
with an advanced powder formulation, McBride 
has created in powder pods a laundry solution that
combines the cleaning power of a tablet with the
flexibility of powder and the convenience and 
benefits of a sachet.
This ‘tablet in a sachet’ is already selling strongly
through 2,000 stores of one retailer , giving consumers
access to a range of product advantages for which
they’re prepared to pay a premium, meaning attractive
financial returns for our customer and ourselves.
Our speed off the mark means that once again we
are at the forefront of laundry technology with none 
of the established brand producers actively marketing
products in the arena.
identify the problem
define the requirement
set the goal
develop ideas to remove root causes
test solutions
standardise and measure
validate the problem/process
refine the problem/goal
measure the key steps
analyse the data
identify the root causes
control the process
establish standard measures to 
maintain performance
Control
Establish project charter
Analysis Improve
Involvement 
of people
Team working Identifying 
'good' projects
Measurement Problem definition
Continuous improvement cycle
Continuous improvement in McBride
This is an approach that embraces every area and level
of the organisation. In the UK alone there are now
over 150 teams generating the fresh thinking that
produces tangible results across multiple aspects and
facets of the business – from saving £56,000-a-year
by reducing waste on a liquid filling line to cutting the
time taken to process invoice queries by 50%. Mike Handley
August 2003
From the innovation of new products, protection of our natural
environment through the prudent use of resources and minimising
waste, and focusing on the welfare and development of our people,
we’re committed to achieving responsible, sustainable development 
throughout our business.
RESPONSIBILITY = 
SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT
RESPONSIBILITY = 
SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT
22
Private Label household 
and personal care products
23
McBride plc
The market leaders
There is a real commitment within the Company to operate within the
sustainable development context, minimising our impacts and benefiting
consumers and local communities wherever possible. This is evidenced 
by the 2 million Euros spent during the year on health, safety and
environmental improvements, by making investments today , we are
reducing the long-term future costs of doing business.
Our concept of sustainability follows that of the Bruntland Commission
(development to meet our needs without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their own needs). As a Company we are
committed to working in line with this principle, both in our own
production and development facilities, and in our dealings as an industry
through involvement with trade association activities. Key areas of
sustainable activity are:
•Minimisation of environmental impact of products in manufacture, 
use and disposal.
•Development and manufacture of products which are safe for 
their intended use in terms of human health and which contribute 
to the benefit of society .
•Minimisation of any adverse effects of our activities on local
communities, and contribution of a beneficial impact 
wherever possible.
During the steady introduction of the Company’ s Environmental
Management System across its UK sites in 2002-03, despite increased
production McBride achieved savings of £237,000 over 2001-02 through
better waste, recycling, effluent, power and water management. The
same period included no major environmental incidents, no complaints or
prosecutions from the Environment Agency and a 30% decrease in minor
incidents, all saving valuable resources, management and operational time.
Similarly , our employee Health & Safety policies continue to drive down
the number of working days lost due to accidents at work. An important
contribution is being made by employee participation in planning safe
and healthy working environments, as well as the actions resulting from
our regular site reports and review meetings. Such activities are all leading
directly to reduced employer liability claims and insurance costs. In the UK
RoSPA independently audits our sites every 2 years and gives a score for
each site and a list of recommendations, while in Europe a safety index
quantifies performance and is used to monitor progress.
By continuously ensuring product safety , we are both protecting 
the end-consumer and helping to strengthen further our excellent
relationships with retail customers. During the last year , we have 
reviewed the raw materials used in our products more extensively and
deeply than ever before.
Reusing water
Fresh water is one of the planet’ s most important
resources, and we’re committed to re-using this
irreplaceable natural commodity wherever possible.
In our Ieper Delphia site, we’re successfully reusing
40% of Cleaning In Place rinsing water . In the
household products factory , 50% of tank cleaning
water is reused, at Moyaux and Estaimpuis closed
loop cooling systems are in place enabling highly
significant reductions in consumption. 
In the UK, we’re pioneering a new system at the
Middleton site where water already warmed by
passage through a heat exchanger is then used in 
a manufacturing process that requires warm water .
Reducing effluent
Biodiversity is the variety of life at all levels. From
simple cells, through individual species to complete
eco-systems, biodiversity is the basis of the life 
support systems on which we all depend. Worldwide,
biodiversity is being lost at an alarming rate. Pollution,
land use, climate change, species introduction and 
the unsustainable use of natural resources all have 
a global impact on the biodiversity of our world.
McBride recognises the need to understand and
manage the aspects of biodiversity that are affected
by our operations, both during the manufacture 
and the use of our products in order to minimise 
the impacts of these operations on biodiversity 
as a whole.
Conserving energy
By raising awareness of the need for energy
conservation and introducing more efficient lighting,
we have achieved important improvements in energy
use across the Group.
Our Middleton site has reduced overall energy
consumption per unit produced by 9%, while our
bottle-manufacturing site at Bradford is now using
5.8% less electricity for every bottle it makes.
The biggest impact on the environment is via the
wastewater from the manufacturing processes. 
None of our sites send untreated wastewater directly
to the natural environment. All wastewater is treated
in order to make it compatible with its receiving
environment.
In two effluent treatment projects we are achieving
important cost-savings and a significant reduction 
in environmental impact. At Middleton alone we’re
now saving £70,000 each year having reduced the
impact on environment in terms of Chemical Oxygen
Demand (COD) by 80%, while the effluent treatment
plant at Bradford is working at peak efficiency to save
£32,000-a-year .
APL
Barrow
Bradford
Breda
Burnley
Delphia
Estaimpuis
Etain
Globol
Ieper
Middleton
Moyaux
Rosporden
Salient
Solaro
T otal
0
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
7000
8000
Kgs production per m
3
water 2002/2003
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
2001/02 2002/03 2000/01
Accident frequency rate
Frequency rate, the number of L TIs per million 
of hours worked, shows a gradual improvement 
over 3 years, with a significant improvement this
year , where the frequency rate dropped from 
17.75 to 14.75.
As an important member of all the communities where we operate, we
actively encourage open dialogue about our operations and are involved
in many local initiatives, all designed to make a positive contribution to the
lives of our neighbours. These include education, financial assistance for
local charities and other community efforts, economic regeneration and
providing work experience for young people.
One example is a national award-winning scheme where McBride is
working closely with Rochdale Council to provide employees with advice
and support on a wide range of childcare issues. This means we are
actively helping to support the family life of those who work with us.
Other specific projects involve literacy and numeracy classes for any staff
needing such help, sponsorship of children’ s sporting teams, bursaries for
local students and sharing the experience of our staff and management
with small businesses and local non-profit organisations, including health
and safety advice under the HSE Good Neighbour scheme.  The Board meets formally at least six times a year at about two-monthly intervals. During the year ended 30 June 2003, there was 100% attendance by four directors
at these meetings with only one meeting missed by the fifth director . 
In accordance with the provisions of The Code, there is a clear division of responsibilities between the independent non-executive Chairman and the Chief Executive.
Under the independent non-executive Chairman and supported by the Chief Executive there is an open style of management and free flow of information between the
executive and non-executives which is a strong feature of the Board’ s effectiveness. This ensures comprehensive reviews at Board meetings and regular contact between
meetings. The risk assessment programme has been updated during the year including a thorough six-month long internal audit project. The Board regularly reviews
its strategic planning, investment and acquisition proposals and ongoing performance against budget. Board papers are prepared and issued a week prior to each
Board meeting.
Sub-Committees
Sub-Committees of the Board have been established with Charters, approved by the main Board, detail their composition, activities and duties. They also define the extent
of the authority delegated to each sub-Committee.
• Audit Committee – the Committee operates in accordance with a Charter that determines its terms of reference. The Committee currently comprises Mr C Smith as
Chairman and two other non-executive directors Mr H T alerman and Mrs C Bogdanowicz-Bindert. The Committee members normally serve for a period of not less
than three years and a quorum of the Committee is two members. There are a minimum of two meetings per annum and the Committee is authorised by the Board
to investigate any activity within its terms of reference. The business of the Committee takes full account of The Code and is responsible for reviewing, on behalf of the
Board, the Group’ s accounting and financial policies and disclosure practices, its internal controls and the nature, results, recommendations and services of the external
auditors. A report of the activities of the Audit Committee during the year ended 30 June 2003 is included on page 28.
• Remuneration Committee – this Committee also operates in accordance with a Charter that defines its terms of reference and is responsible for the review of
remuneration policies for the executive directors, key senior managers and for reviewing management development matters within the Group. The Committee
comprises a Chairman Mr H T alerman, and three other non-executive directors Lord Sheppard, Mr C Smith and Mr R Lee. Committee meetings are attended
by the Chief Executive on all matters except those relating to his own remuneration. The committee seeks, wherever it is deemed necessary , advice from external
professional advisors. The Committee meets at the request of any member but at least once in each financial year and a quorum is two members. The members
of the Committee have no personal financial interest, other than as shareholders, in the Committee’ s decisions. They have no conflicts of interest arising from
cross-directorships with the executive directors nor from being involved in the day-to-day business of the Company . A full report of the Remuneration Committee
is set out on pages 28 to 33.
• Nominations Committee – this Committee’ s Charter also defines its terms of reference with a Chairman, two non-executive directors and the Chief Executive.
The current membership is Lord Sheppard as Chairman together with Mr C Smith, Mr H T alerman and Mr M Handley . The Committee meets as appropriate and a
quorum is two members. The Committee is responsible for reviewing the structure, size and composition of the Board as well as considering and recommending the
nomination of candidates for appointment as executive or non-executive directors to the Board. The Committee is also responsible for making recommendations to
the Board on the continuation in service of any director who has reached the age of 70. Members of the Committee are not involved in matters affecting their own
positions. In this regard, Lord Sheppard has now attained the age of 70 and the remaining members of the Committee have recommended his re-election to the Board
subject to approval by the shareholders at the Annual General Meeting. 
The Chairmen of the Committees, or in their absence an alternate attend the Annual General Meetings of the Company to respond to any shareholder questions
on the activities of the Committees.
In addition, the following Standing Committee has been established to consider trading, financial and operational matters across the Group. This Committee meets
twelve times per annum.
Group Executive Committee – this Committee is chaired by the Chief Executive, and comprises the Group Finance Director , the three Managing Directors of the
geographically based operating companies, the Business Development Director , the Group Purchasing Director , and the Personnel Director .
25
McBride plc
The market leaders
Directors’ report
The directors of McBride plc have pleasure in presenting to shareholders their Annual Report together with the audited, consolidated financial statements for the year
ended 30 June 2003.
Principal activities and future development
The Group has manufacturing operations in seven European countries with 16 factories including the joint venture. The principal activities of the Group are the
manufacture of Private Label and minor brand household and personal care products. During the year , the Board carried out a thorough review of the Group’ s strategic
three-year plan encompassing all aspects of the objectives and management of the business. Details of the business and their activities during the year are set out in the
Chief Executive’ s review on pages 6 to 9. Information on the Group’ s financial performance and progress are set out in the Finance Director’ s report on pages 10 and 11.
Results and dividends
£m
Group operating profit 29.7
Share of joint venture’ s operating profit 0.5
Interest (4.0)
T axation (7.9)
Minority interest (0.1)
Profit for the financial year after providing for taxation and minority interest 18.2
Dividends per ordinary share 2.9p
Proposed final dividend of 2.1 pence per share to be paid on 28 November 2003 £3.8m
The final dividend is subject to shareholder approval and will be paid on 28 November 2003 to shareholders on the register on 31 October 2003.
Corporate governance
The Board of Directors
The directors who held office during the year and continue to hold office, together with their biographical details are shown on pages 12 and 13. 
At the end of the year to 30 June 2003, the Board comprised five directors two of whom are executive and three non-executive directors. With effect from
1 September 2003, two additional non-executive directors were appointed to the Board. Relevant biographical details are included on page 13 and both appointees
will stand for election at the Annual General Meeting. 
In accordance with the Articles of Association of the Company , the directors retiring by rotation at the Annual General Meeting are the Chairman, Lord Sheppard of
Didgemere, and the Chief Executive, Mr M Handley , who, being eligible, offer themselves for re-election.
Lord Sheppard attained the age of 70 on 25 December 2002 and, in accordance with the provisions of the Combined Code (“The Code”) of the Financial Services
Authority , the Company’ s Articles of Association and the Companies Act 1985, special notice has been given of the intention to propose an ordinary resolution at the
Annual General Meeting that he be re-elected a director of the Company .
The Company’ s Articles of Association require one third of the directors to stand for re-election every year . This ensures that shareholders have a regular opportunity to
reassess the composition of the Board. The Company has always complied with best practice by ensuring that every director is subject to re-election every three years. If the
Board consider it necessary , approval will be sought from shareholders to amend the Company’ s Articles of Association to ensure ongoing compliance with The Code.
The Board recognises its responsibility to represent and promote the interests of shareholders and its accountability to shareholders for the performance and activities
of the Group. At the same time, the Board recognises the responsibility of the executive directors to manage the Group’ s activities. A schedule of matters has been
established that are specifically reserved for decision by the Board, this recognises that in certain situations their decision will be subject to shareholder approval. The tasks
of monitoring executive actions and reviewing operational issues are delegated to the Chief Executive who oversees the management of the Group’ s business activities
and to Board Committees (see page 25). 
The Board’ s strong non-executive element continues to be based on each non-executive director being independent of management. Between them, the non-executive
directors bring a broad range of relevant experience and independent judgement to the Group. The non-executive directors have undertaken some specific training
relevant to their duties. Induction programmes are undertaken by newly appointed members of the Board including site visits, and strategic and operational presentations
by senior executives. The non-executive directors have been appointed for their specific areas of expertise and knowledge, which can bring complementary skills to the
Board. The designated senior independent non-executive director is Mr H T alerman.
24
Private Label household 
and personal care products Directors’ Interests: Share Capital
The interest of the directors in the shares of the Company at the beginning and the end of the financial year were:
Lord Sheppard Mr M Handley Mr M Roberts Mr C Smith
Non- Non- Non- Non-
beneficial Beneficial beneficial Beneficial beneficial Beneficial beneficial Beneficial
Ordinary shares at 30 June 2002 – 2,010,000 181,152 1,968,848 – – – 75,000
Purchased during the year – 5,000 – – – – – 25,000
Ordinary shares at 30 June 2003 – 2,015,000 181,152 1,968,848 – – – 100,000
Mr H T alerman Mr R Lee Mrs C Bogdanowicz-Bindert
Non- Non- Non-
beneficial Beneficial beneficial Beneficial beneficial Beneficial
Ordinary shares at 30 June 2002 – – – – – –
Purchased during the year – – – – – –
Ordinary shares at 30 June 2003 – – – – – –
There were no changes in the directors’ interests shown between 30 June 2003 and 10 September 2003.
On 26 July 2002, Lehman Brothers Inc. disposed of their entire shareholding having previously resigned their Board seat on 31 December 2001.
During the year to 30 June 2003 Mr C Smith acquired 25,000 ordinary shares and Lord Sheppard of Didgemere purchased 5,000 ordinary shares in the Company . 
Save for service agreements there were no contracts of significance with the Company , or any subsidiary undertaking, subsisting during or at the end of the periods
in which any director is or was materially interested. None of the directors holds shares beneficially in any subsidiary undertaking.
Directors’ Responsibility for the Preparation of Financial Statements
Company Law requires the directors to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Company and
the Group at the end of the year , and of the profit and loss for that period. In preparing financial statements, the directors are required to:
• Select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
• Make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
• State whether applicable accounting standards have been followed, subject to any material departures, disclosed and explained in the financial statements;
• Prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to assume that the Group will continue in business.
The directors are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Company and enable
them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 1985. They have general responsibility for taking such steps as are reasonably open to them
to safeguard the assets of the Group and to prevent and detect fraud and other irregularities.
Going Concern Basis
After appropriate consideration the directors have a reasonable expectation that the Company and the Group have adequate resources to continue in operational
existence for the foreseeable future. The Group has, therefore, continued to adopt the going concern basis in preparing these financial statements.
Charitable Donations
Donations made during the year amounted to £19,100 (2002 – £34,000). There were no political donations made in the year (2002 – £Nil). 
Payments to Creditors
Group companies agree terms and conditions for business transactions with their suppliers. Payments are then made in accordance with these terms, subject to agreed
terms and conditions being met by the suppliers. The number of supplier days represented by trade creditors for the Group was calculated at 77 as at 30 June 2003, split
69 UK and 82 Europe.
Non-Audit Fees
During the year , the Group incurred non-audit fees totalling £0.2 million relating to taxation compliance and tax restructuring work. No strategic consulting advice was
provided by the Group’ s external auditors during the year . This work was awarded after completion of a competitive tendering process. 
Share Repurchases
At the 2002 Annual General Meeting, shareholder approval was granted to allow the Company to repurchase up to 26,645,878 ordinary shares. The intention remains
that this authority will only be utilised if the directors are satisfied that repurchase of the shares would result in an increase in earnings per share and is in the best interests
of the shareholders. This authority will expire on the date of the next Annual General Meeting when the directors will be seeking renewed authority from the shareholders. 
27
McBride plc
The market leaders
Directors’ report continued
Compliance
The Company , recognising of the importance of Corporate Governance has continued and fully endorses the Principles of Good Governance and Code of Best Practice
encompassed in The Code. The Company regularly and actively reviews its level of compliance with The Code and the ways in which the Company applies and complies
with the Principles of The Code are set out elsewhere in this report. The Company complied throughout the period under review with the provisions of Section 1 of The
Code except in the following respect, the Chief Executive continues to hold a two-year service contract. The Remuneration Committee considers this to be appropriate
given the Chief Executive’ s length of service, from the Buy-In in1993 and flotation in 1995, and his knowledge of the UK and European retail industry and Private Label
in particular . However , future service contracts for new directors have been and will continue to be awarded on a maximum of one year .
Relationship with Shareholders
The Board places considerable importance on the maintenance of good communications with institutional shareholders. Meetings with analysts and institutional
shareholders are held on a regular basis at the time of the Interim and Final results. These provide the opportunity for shareholders to assess the Company’ s performance
and prospects and to explore the Company’ s approach to Corporate Governance matters. The Board keeps shareholders regularly appraised of the performance of the
Company through the Annual Report and Accounts, regular announcements to the London Stock Exchange and, at the half year , an Interim report is published. The
Annual General Meeting provides an opportunity for any shareholder to ask questions and the Chairman provides a statement on the current trading conditions. The
Company responds throughout the year to correspondence received from individual shareholders on a wide range of issues.
All proxy votes are declared after the show of hands on each Resolution tabled to the Annual General Meeting.
Internal Control 
The Board has ultimate responsibility for the Group’ s system of internal control and for reviewing its effectiveness. It is designed to provide reasonable, but not absolute,
assurance that the assets are safeguarded against unauthorised use or material loss and that transactions are properly authorised and recorded. During the year , a detailed
Group-wide internal audit project examined all internal control and risk management measures. In addition, a full review of the Group’ s accounting policies and
management information were undertaken during the year . This will strengthen financial consistency making intra-Group comparisons easier . The Board confirms that
there is an ongoing process for identifying, evaluating and managing risks faced by the Company which has been in place for the year under review. 
The internal control system embraces all business risks, including financial, operational and strategic and incorporates a full review of compliance controls and risk
management across the Company . This system is operated as an integral part of organisation of executive responsibilities and accountabilities.
The main features are:
• A 3-year strategic planning process with the objective of continuing to improve the existing business through sales growth, operational efficiency , asset utilisation
and staff participation. These plans are discussed by the Board and are subject to regular assessment, updating and follow-up.
• The Group organisation has well defined management responsibility and reporting lines. The Chief Executive and Finance Director meet monthly with the Group
Executive Committee and all Operating Divisions to review performance by site, product and business area.
• An experienced internal auditor was appointed, on an interim basis, to review operational, financial and strategic business risks and controls across the business.
• There is a comprehensive annual budgeting system with ultimate approval by the Board. Financial performance of the subsidiaries is monitored centrally and updated
forecasts are prepared and challenged on a regular basis. A formal process for ensuring that key risks affecting all the Group’ s operations are identified and assessed
on a regular basis, together with the controls in place to mitigate these risks.
• There are well-defined policies relating to personnel issues and subsidiaries report regularly on health, safety and environmental matters. The Board regularly reviews
overall performance.
• The Audit Committee meets regularly to review internal reports and reports from the external auditors.
• Authorisation and control procedures have been developed for expenditure on capital projects. Those for operating costs and contractual commitments
have been reviewed.
26
Private Label household 
and personal care products Constitution
The Committee comprises four non-executive directors. It is chaired by Mr H T alerman with the other members being Lord Sheppard and Mr C Smith. In addition Mr R Lee
was appointed with effect from September 2003. A quorum of the Committee is two. All members were in attendance at the three meetings held in the year to 30 June
2003. Meetings are attended by the Chief Executive on all matters except those relating to his own remuneration. 
During 2002/03 financial year , the Committee took cognisance of the Incomes Data Services Report (IDSR) 2002, “UK 350” Quoted Companies Digest which provides
comprehensive comparative remuneration data for all senior positions in the UK and for UK companies with overseas activities.
Remuneration Policy 
The Remuneration Committee has a policy for the remuneration of executive and non-executive directors and keeps it under regular review allowing flexibility to take
account of changes in the trading environment and in remuneration practices. The key principles of the policy are set out below. The Committee has no plans, at present,
materially to alter the framework of the current remuneration arrangements for future financial years. 
The Committee gives full consideration to provisions of The Code and aims to ensure that remuneration packages offered are competitive and designed to attract, 
retain and motivate executive directors and senior executives of the right calibre. The performance of the executive directors and key members of senior management is
evaluated as a pre-cursor to setting their annual remuneration and awards of share options. The remuneration policy is designed to provide packages which take account
of individual performance whilst remaining sensitive to pay and employment conditions elsewhere in the Company and externally . This is especially the case when
determining annual salary increases. In addition, the Committee aims to align executive directors’ incentives with shareholders’ interests through the granting of
discretionary share options. 
Packages typically comprise a mix of performance and non-performance-related elements. Basic salary and benefits-in-kind are the elements of non-performance-related
remuneration. This element is reviewed annually with levels set by reference to appropriate external market data. Variable remuneration consists of two fundamental
elements: annual cash bonus and discretionary share options. These incentives are performance-related and represent a significant part of the executive directors’ total
potential remuneration. Bonuses represent a short-term performance-related element of remuneration with payments linked to annual business targets. Grants of share
options represent longer-term performance-related elements of remuneration. The Committee reviews the number of share options granted to executive directors and key
senior managers, together with the exercise price, to ensure that they remain effective. The Committee’ s policy is to seek to ensure that consideration is given to guidelines
issued by institutional investors as well as to developing market practice.
The remuneration of the Chairman and the non-executive directors is determined by the Board as a whole taking account of market rates based on independent advice
as deemed necessary . Individual directors do not participate in the decisions concerning their own remuneration.
Base Salaries
The base salaries of executive directors and senior executives are reviewed annually taking into account individual experience performance and responsibilities as well as
pay awards made to other employees, and benchmarking against remuneration for similar positions. The Remuneration Committee consults with the Chief Executive and
pays due regard to his recommendations for other executives. The Committee also has access to professional advice as may be deemed necessary from inside and outside
the Company . Salaries are paid monthly in arrears by bank transfer .
Annual Bonus
The Remuneration Committee aims to ensure that senior executives are fairly rewarded for their contribution to the success of the Group. For the year ended 2004 there 
is therefore a significant bonus element of up to 50% of basic pay to executives’ remuneration. Bonuses, which are non-pensionable, are linked to the achievement of the
Group’ s annual budget that has been approved by the Board. Only for results in excess of the budget are bonuses earned at the higher levels. Bonuses of between 20%
and 45% were paid to the Group’ s executives and senior managers in respect of the year ended 30 June 2003.
Share Options
Whilst the directors are not required to hold any qualification shares, the Remuneration Committee believes that share ownership by management serves to strengthen
the link between their personal interests and those of shareholders. The executive directors and senior executives are eligible to participate in the Company’ s share option
schemes. The Committee’ s policy is for option grants to be limited to twice annual basic salary . In exceptional circumstances, options in excess of two times salary may be
granted. During the year , the Company granted executive share options under the McBride 1995 International Executive Share Option Scheme and the McBride plc 2002
Unapproved Discretionary Share Option Scheme. It is not the Committee’ s policy to grant executive share options at a discount. Awards vesting under the share option
schemes are not pensionable.
Under the executive share option schemes, participants are granted options to acquire ordinary shares in the Company for a consideration payable on exercise equal to
market value at the time of grant. No consideration is payable for the grant of an option. The proportion of the shares under option which may vest is subject to the
achievement of performance targets over a performance period set by the Remuneration Committee. The Committee has set performance criteria for the new grants
made during the year in order to ensure that share options represent an effective tool for attracting, motivating and retaining executives. The selection of performance
criteria that are linked to EPS is in line with 70% of other schemes. The Committee have also recognised the latest market practice under which the majority of current
schemes set targets for the full award to vest by reference to growth in EPS exceeding that in the RPI in the range of +2% per annum to 5% per annum measured over
a fixed period of three financial years. The criteria established for the McBride options fall within these ranges. In addition, a sliding scale has been introduced, again, in 
line with market practice.
29
McBride plc
The market leaders
Directors’ report continued
Report of the audit committee
The role of the Audit Committee is to assist the Board in fulfilling its responsibilities regarding the integrity of the Company’ s financial statements, reviewing risk
management and internal control, compliance with legal and regulatory requirements, the performance, the appointment, re-appointment and remuneration of
external auditors, and reviewing the Company’ s financial reporting standards.
Audit Committee
The Committee’ s Charter was updated during the year to reflect recent developments in Corporate Governance and further revisions are currently under consideration
to take account of the Revised Combined Code. 
The Committee met three times during the financial year ended 30 June 2003 in September 2002, February 2003 and May 2003. Subsequent to the year-end, a further
meeting took place to consider the outcome of the annual audit.
The composition of the Committee will be reviewed following the appointment of two new non-executive directors to the Board.
During the year , the principal activities of the Committee were as follows:
Financial Statements
The Committee considered reports from the external auditors and the Group Finance Director on both the interim and full year financial statements.
Accounting Policies
The Committee received updates on technical reporting issues. It also approved the proposed changes to the Group’ s Accounting Policies Manual that took account
of developments in accounting standards. 
External Auditors
The Committee received reports from the external auditors including reviews on the scope and outcome of the interim and year-end audits, including issues raised during
the audits, and management’ s responses to accounting matters, governance and control, and accounting developments.
The Committee also reviewed audit-related and taxation services provided by KPMG Audit plc. In addition, the Committee considered the independence and objectivity
of the external auditors taking due account of the latest guidelines. 
Risk Management & Internal Control
During the year an internal audit project was established to undertake a detailed review of the Company’ s approach to internal control and risk management. The
Committee received regular reports on the project which is ongoing. 
Remuneration report
This report prepared on behalf of the Board, sets out the policy and disclosures on remuneration for any of the executive and non-executive directors of the Board. It takes
full account of The Code and it complies with the requirements introduced by the Directors’ Remuneration Report Regulations 2002. This report will be put to an advisory
vote of the Company’ s shareholders at the Annual General Meeting.
Remuneration Committee
Terms of Reference
The Committee is governed by a Charter which was updated and adopted by the full Board on 16 September 2002. The Committee is authorised by the Board to
investigate any matters within its terms of reference. The Committee is responsible for determining the remuneration policy for the executive directors and reviewing
the Chief Executive’ s recommendations for key senior executives. The main duties of the Committee are:
• Making recommendations to the Board on remuneration packages for the executive directors
• Reviewing and considering the remuneration packages and terms of employment for other senior executive management
• Operating and implementing the Company’ s share option schemes
• Reviewing the Company’ s management development programmes
The Committee meets at least once a year to consider remuneration packages for directors and senior executives including reviews of base salary , pension rights, bonus
and grants of share options. In the 2002/03 financial year , the Committee met three times in July 2002, September 2002 and May 2003.
28
Private Label household 
and personal care products Non-Executive Directors
The non-executive directors do not have service contracts but renewable letters of appointment for 12 months in the case of Lord Sheppard, Mr H T alerman and 
Mr C Smith, and until July 2004 for Mrs C Bogdanowicz-Bindert and Mr R. Lee. 
The non-executive directors are subject to re-election by the shareholders on a rotation basis at the Annual General Meetings in accordance with the Company’ s Articles of
Association. Their appointments may be terminated without compensation in the event of them not being re-elected by shareholders or otherwise in accordance with the
Company’ s Articles of Association. The fees for the non-executive directors are set by the full Board and are determined by reference to fees paid by other companies of
similar size and complexity and reflect the amount of time the non-executive directors are expected to devote to the Group’ s activities during the year . No element of their
fees is performance-related and they are not eligible to participate in bonus or share incentive schemes. Their services do not qualify for pension purposes or other benefits.
Details of the non-executive directors’ emoluments and shareholdings are shown on pages 27 and 32.
Set out below is information regarding the dates of service contracts, notice periods, together with the dates of the Letters of Appointment for the non-executive directors.
Date first Date of last Re-election no Compensation Latest
appointed appointment later then upon early Letter of
to board at AGM in AGM in Notice period termination Appointment
Lord Sheppard of Didgemere* 23 May 1993 2001 2003 None None 1 July 2003
Mr H T alerman 23 May 1993 2002 2005 None None 1 July 2003
Mr C Smith 4 April 2002 2002 2005 None None 1 July 2003
Mr R Lee** 1 September 2003 2003 2006 None None 1 September 2003
Mrs C Bogdanowicz-Bindert** 1 September 2003 2003 2006 None None 1 September 2003
* Having attained the age of 70, Lord Sheppard will be subject to re-election at the 2003 AGM
** The two new non-executive directors will stand for election at the first AGM following their date of appointment 
Performance Graph
The following line graph shows, for the financial year ended 30 June 2003 and for each of the previous five financial years, the total shareholder return on a holding of the
Company’ s ordinary shares compared with a hypothetical holding of shares made up of shares of the same kinds and number as those by reference to the FTSE 250 index.
The directors consider this index to be appropriate because the FTSE 250 index provides a well defined, understood and accessible benchmark. 
T otal shareholder return has been calculated on the basis of share price performance and dividends.
External Appointments
Executive directors are permitted, where appropriate and with Board approval, to assume non-executive directorships of other organisations recognising that such 
non-executive duties can broaden experience and add knowledge to the benefit of the Group. The policy is that the fees may be retained. Currently , Mr M Handley 
is non-executive Chairman of Macphie of Glenbervie Ltd in Scotland and holds a seat on the Board of the AISE.
31
McBride plc
The market leaders
Directors’ report continued
Remuneration report continued
Share Options continued
The Committee will pay due regard to the rules of the scheme and will review the relevance of the performance criteria and have regard to market practice and relevant
guidance on future issues of share options.
The 2002 share scheme rules incorporate provisions to allow the Company , at its discretion, to transfer its National Insurance Contributions (NICs) liability to
individual grantees. 
Two tranches of share options were granted to the executive directors during the year , details of which are set out on page 32. For the awards made in September 2002,
the performance criteria were based on growth in EPS over the three financial years ending 30 June 2004. For the awards made in December 2002, the performance
criteria were based on growth in EPS over the three financial years ending 30 June 2005.
For each tranche, performance will be measured by comparing EPS reported for the financial year last ended before the start of the period, i.e. the year to 30 June 2001 or
the year to 30 June 2002, with EPS reported for the last financial year of the period, i.e. the year to 30 June 2004 or the year to 30 June 2005. Under these criteria, options
will not vest at all unless growth in earnings per share exceeds the increase in RPI over the same period by 3% per annum, at which level only one half of the options will
vest. For performance above this level, options will vest on a rising scale, with full vesting only if growth in earnings per share exceeds the increase in RPI by at least 5% per
annum. If the minimum performance criteria have not been achieved, the options lapse. T o the extent that the performance criteria are only partially met, the options lapse
in part. The Committee has determined that the same performance criteria should be applied to further options should they be granted to the executive directors during
the current financial year . 
All schemes have a ten-year life span and are exercisable after three years from the date of grant, subject to satisfaction of performance conditions, until ten-years after the
date of grant.
Directors’ Service Contracts
Historically , executive directors contract periods had been set at two years. The Committee still considers that it is appropriate for Mr M Handley to retain a two-year
contract given his length of service from the Buy-In in 1993 and flotation in 1995, his knowledge of the UK and European retail industry and Private Label in particular .
However , the Committee recognises the prevailing practice amongst comparable companies as well as the requirements of The Code and the policy of awarding executive
contracts on a one-year basis has now been adopted. Mr M Roberts has been granted a contract terminable by the Company on 12 months notice. All directors’ contracts
are available for inspection at the Annual General Meeting.
Executive Directors
Mr M Handley’ s contract therefore stipulates 24 months’ notice by the Company and 12 months’ notice by the director .
Mr M Robert’ s contract stipulates 12 months’ notice by the Company and 12 months’ by the director . 
The service agreements provide for the executive directors to provide services to the Company on a full-time basis. The agreements contain, in addition to remuneration
terms, details of holiday and sick pay entitlement, restrictions and disciplinary matters. 
The agreements contain restrictive covenants for periods of 12 months post employment relating to non-competition, non-solicitation of the Group’ s customers, suppliers
and employees and indefinitely with respect of confidential information. In addition, they provide for the Group to own any intellectual property rights created by the
directors in the course of their employment. The Company allows the executive directors to hold non-executive positions outside the Company . 
In the event of termination of an executive director’ s contract, the Committee’ s policy would be to deal fairly with such cases whilst at the same time taking a robust line in
minimising any compensation. Mr M Handley’ s contract stipulates that in the event of early termination by the Company , liquidated damages equal to twice the gross
annual salary payable and the pension entitlement together shall be payable. This currently equates to £1,110,000. Mr M Roberts’ contract stipulates a 12 month notice
period. Whilst the Committee recognises the explicit provisions of the Code for compensation commitments to be stipulated in directors’ service contracts in regard to
early termination, the Committee will continue to keep under review its current practice which is not to include such provisions in order to enable it to respond
appropriately to particular circumstances.
Other Benefits
The Company pays into defined contribution pension schemes on behalf of Mr M Handley and Mr M Roberts based upon basic salary at 50% and 35% respectively . In
addition, both directors enjoy similar benefits to many other employees of the Group including private medical insurance, a fully expensed car and life assurance cover .
30
Private Label household 
and personal care products
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
June 1998 June 1999 June 2000 June 2001 June 2002 June 2003
McBride plc
FTSE 250 The performance criteria relating to the various grants of executive share options are as follows:
1995 Executive Share Option Scheme
Options are exercisable at any time from 3 years after the date of grant to 10 years after the date of grant. Performance conditions require that, in the 3 financial years
prior to that in which options are to be exercised, EPS must have increased at an average annual rate of 3% in excess of the RPI.
1995 International Executive Share Option Scheme (Unapproved)
Performance is measured by comparing EPS reported for the financial year ended 30 June 2001 with EPS reported for the financial year ending 30 June 2004. Under these
criteria, options will not vest at all unless growth in earnings per share exceeds the increase in RPI over the same period by 3% per annum, at which level only one half of
the options will vest. For performance above this level, options will vest on a rising scale, with full vesting only if growth in earnings per share exceeds the increase in RPI by
at least 5% per annum. If the minimum performance criteria have not been achieved, the options lapse. T o the extent that the performance criteria are only partially met,
the options lapse in part. 
2002 Unapproved Discretionary Share Option Scheme
Performance is measured by comparing EPS reported for the financial year ended 30 June 2002 with EPS reported for the financial year ending 30 June 2005. Under these
criteria, options will not vest at all unless growth in earnings per share exceeds the increase in RPI over the same period by 3% per annum, at which level only one half of
the options will vest. For performance above this level, options will vest on a rising scale, with full vesting only if growth in earnings per share exceeds the increase in RPI by
at least 5% per annum. If the minimum performance criteria have not been achieved, the options lapse. T o the extent that the performance criteria are only partially met,
the options lapse in part. 
Pensions
The following table shows details of pension payments into money purchase schemes for the executive directors:
Current year payments
£000
Mr M Handley 171
Mr M Roberts 61
Compensation for past Directors
There have been no awards made to former directors of the Company by way of compensation for loss of office or pensions.
Payments to Third Parties
There have been no payments made to third parties for making available the services of the directors.
The directors’ remuneration report was approved by the Board and signed on its behalf by Mr M Roberts, Company Secretary , on 10 September 2003.
33
McBride plc
The market leaders
Directors’ report continued
Remuneration report continued
Information subject to Audit
Directors’ Emoluments & Compensation
Breakdown of Remuneration
The fixed and performance-related elements of directors’ remuneration for the year ending 30 June 2003 are illustrated in the table below:
Directors’ Emoluments
Sub-total Pension contributions T otal remuneration
Y ear Y ear Y ear Y ear Y ear Y ear
ended ended ended ended ended ended
Basic 30 June 30 June 30 June 30 June 30 June 30 June
Fees Salary Bonus Benefits* 2003 2002 2003 2002 2003 2002
£000 £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 £000 £000
Executive
Mr M Handley – 344 160 48 552 486 171 146 723 632
Mr M Roberts (from 2/01/02) – 174 82 15 271 121 61 25 332 146
Mr T Monks (to 30/09/2001) –– – – – 46 – 14 – 60
Non-executive
Lord Sheppard 100 – – – 100 100 – – 100 100
Mr H T alerman (USA) 25 – – – 25 15 – – 25 15
Mr C Smith 25 – – – 25 6– – 25 6
Mr A Washkowitz (USA)
(to 13/12/2001) –– – – – 6– – – 6
150 518 242 63 973 780** 232 185 1,205 965
* The benefits consist of the provision of a company car and fuel, private healthcare insurance and life cover .
** The bonus is reported on an accruals basis in the 2003 financial statements. Previously , bonuses were only recognised and reported when paid. 
The comparatives for the 2002 financial year have been restated to include those bonus payments made during the 2002/03 financial year , but relating to the 2001/02
financial performance. The effect is to increase by £114,000 bonus payments to Mr M Handley and to include a £32,000 bonus payment to Mr M Roberts.
Share Options
Details of the share options held by the directors at 1 July 2002 and 30 June 2003 are set out below:
As at Granted Exercised Lapsed As at Earliest
Option 01 July 02 in year in year In year 30 June 03 Option date of Expiry
type number number number number number price (£)* exercise date
Mr M Handley ESOS (1) 292,553 – – – 292,553 1.88 6 July 1998 5 July 2005
SA YE 37,191 – – – 37,191 0.445 1 Aug 2007 31 Jan 2008 
ESOS (2) – 555,555 – – 555,555 0.585 24 Sept 2005 24 Sept 2012
ESOS (3) – 465,278 – – 465,278 0.72 16 Dec 2005 15 Dec 2012
Mr M Roberts ESOS (2) – 273,504 – – 273,504 0.585 24 Sept 2005 24 Sept 2012
ESOS (3) – 236,111 – – 236,111 0.72 16 Dec 2005 15 Dec 2012
* option price is market value at the date of grant
ESOS (1) = 1995 Executive Share Option Scheme 
SA YE = 1995 Savings-Related Share Option Scheme
ESOS (2) = 1995 International Executive Share Option Scheme (Unapproved)
ESOS (3) = 2002 Unapproved Discretionary Share Option Scheme
No consideration was paid for the grant of any option.
The market price of the Company's ordinary shares at 30 June 2003 was 95p and the range during the financial year was 48p to 95p.
32
Private Label household 
and personal care products Health and Safety
Detailed health, safety and environmental reports are prepared by the operating companies each year and submitted to the Board for review and regular monitoring
of controls takes place on at least a quarterly basis by the local operating company management teams with a full business risk review undertaken on an annual basis.
A detailed health and safety management system has been developed and is well established in the UK. Increasingly , CE has been aligning its policies and approaches with
those of the UK and, during the year , the emphasis has been on the integration of safety , environment and quality systems. Risk assessment and risk management are key
drivers of the systems. Across the Group, there is a commitment to continuous improvement.
Both parts of the business have their own health and safety policy which covers all health and safety activities. These policies are translated into internal standards for each
site and are documented and incorporated into management systems. All sites have a system in place for occupational health. The level of resource depends on local legal
requirements and the relative risk base of each facility .
All sites develop action plans based on central objectives and standards, as well as site specific issues and needs. Internal audits of activities and legislative compliance are
carried out on a regular basis. In the UK, all sites are audited every two years by independent auditors from RoSPA (Royal Society of Prevention of Accidents). On each
occasion, scores have increased and all UK sites are currently rated good or excellent, demonstrating clear progress in the management of safety . During the year , the
Bradford site has attained HACCP accreditation for the first time. Management overviews are held on an annual basis to review the overall performance and strategy , 
to evaluate whether the system meets the needs, to plan actions for improvement and to establish objectives and targets for the forthcoming year . T raining is a constant
activity at all sites and has been identified as a key driver for further improvements in performance. There is particular focus on safety performance with all accidents and
major incidents being reported internally and subject to full investigation to determine appropriate corrective and preventative measures. Further improvements have been
made over previous years with the Group frequency rate (the number of lost time injuries per million of hours worked) dropping in the year from 17.75 to 14.75.
Policies are also in operation for product safety , covering raw material use and product assessments, legal, label and packaging requirements together with claim support
when these have safety implications. The Group has a policy on not testing products on animals, or requesting such testing of products or ingredients by any supplier or
third party . There have been no non-compliances with regulations concerning customer health and safety during the year and no fines or penalties were incurred. Both
human safety and environmental impacts are assessed for all household products under the requirements of the revised Dangerous Preparations Directive and products
assessed to involve excessive risks to human safety and/or the environment are not sold. 
Ethical Conduct 
The Group expects its employees to operate against high ethical standards in areas such as adherence to all legislative and regulatory guidelines, in its business relationships
and as regards human rights. 
Unethical behaviour is not acceptable and written policies on harassment, equality and well being are in place to ensure that employees behave in an appropriate manner .
Established standards of operating with suppliers and customers are in place covering, for example, the prohibition of giving and receiving bribes and gifts. Supplier audits
also address issues of environmental as well as social and ethical conduct. 
Social Report 
The Group recognises that the impact of its operations on the environment and on the wider society are of considerable importance.
Customers
As a major supplier of product to the Retailers, the Group recognises the importance of ensuring that there is no adverse impact on the reputation of its customers.
It is fundamental to the ethos of the Group that the social impacts of its products, their safety , quality and availability must satisfy the requirements of its customers and
their consumers. We are committed to providing quality and reliable service to our customers and customer service is the primary operational goal across the Group.
Measurement of customer service levels on a daily basis is a key area of focus. In addition, customer consultation and maintenance of good relationships with customers 
is of paramount importance across all activities of the business, not only in the Commercial field, but also as regards Logistics and Product and T echnical Development.
Employees
The Group recognises that its employees are a valuable asset and particular emphasis is placed on involving employees wherever possible. It is acknowledged that team
working is invaluable in helping to deliver the Company’ s goals. The Group’ s strategy and business plans are shared with senior managers who are responsible for
cascading down information as appropriate within the organisation.
A two-year rolling programme of opinion surveys by site has been in place for ten years to monitor employee satisfaction levels on a regular basis. The Group has made
further progress on developing its training and development policies, and introducing appraisals for all employees, as well as ensuring that all employees receive regular
briefings. Extensive training programmes are underway in support of systems developments. The Group has also continued to develop its Well Being and Capability
policies. In the UK, all sites (bar one) have now achieved Investor in People accreditation and Partnership Councils (joint management/employee consultation groups) have
been established at most facilities. During the year , the Burnley site received Business Excellence Awards as winner on the People Practices subsection and runner-up in the
North West of England.
Employees are encouraged to become shareholders through participation in the McBride Savings-Related Share Option Scheme and eligible employees are also able
to participate in the Group’ s achievements through performance-related bonus schemes and Executive Share Option Schemes.
35
McBride plc
The market leaders
Directors’ report continued
Social responsibility
Environmental, social and ethical performance review
The Group places considerable importance on compliance with, not only environmental standards, but also on improving ethical standards and social performance. Health,
safety and environmental matters continue to be high on the agenda with robust reporting systems in place. Experiences, best practice and the impact and consequences
of new legislation are shared across the Group.
It is Group policy to set its minimum standards of performance at the legally required level and to strive where commercially feasible to exceed these standards. Continuous
improvement plans are in place at all manufacturing facilities to ensure that legislative compliance is maintained throughout the business. Verification of compliance with
applicable legislation and regulations is a primary element of the Group’ s policy and regular checks are undertaken internally of existing and forthcoming rules and
appropriate measures are planned to comply . In addition, the Group has senior management representation on various T rade Associations and complies with Industry
Association guidelines.
Full crisis management procedures have been documented and are regularly reviewed to ensure that effective communication and reporting channels exist in the event of
any adverse event. In addition, disaster recovery plans have been prepared to ensure that, in the event of a serious incident, the sites are able to respond in a timely manner
to minimise any adverse impact to either the Company or its stakeholders. 
During the year , the Group’ s Social and Ethical policy has been formalised. This provides a practical set of guidelines for employees to ensure they exercise acceptable
standards of behaviour in all their business dealings. The policy is to be issued on an annual basis to all relevant employees and, in future, audits against compliance will
take place with the objective of ensuring consistent implementation of the policy .
The Group has also prepared its first Sustainable Development Report covering activities of the McBride plc sites located in Western Europe. It does not include Poland at
present, although its inclusion is planned for the future. This first report sets a baseline for future reports and establishes that there is a real commitment within the Group
to operate within the sustainable development context, minimising impacts and benefiting consumers and local communities wherever possible. In this context, 2 million
Euros have been spent during the year on health, safety and environmental improvements across the Group.
As a member of the AISE, the Group is actively contributing towards the production of the AISE Sustainable Development Charter and follows other voluntary agreements
between the detergent industry and the European Commission. Key areas of sustainable activity include:
• Minimisation of environmental impact of products in manufacture, use and disposal.
• Development and manufacture of products which are safe for their intended use in terms of human health and which contribute to the benefit of society .
• Minimisation of any adverse effects on the Group’ s activities and local communities, and contribution of a beneficial impact wherever possible.
The report seeks to demonstrate the Group’ s commitment to the concept of sustainable development, not only by setting out the Group’ s policy and approach to such
matters, but also by including information about the extent of compliance by the Group and recording its achievements during the year . Specific reference to some of
these achievements is made on pages 22 and 23.
Environmental
The Group recognises the requirement to manage all aspects of the business to minimise the impacts of its operations on the environment. This is represented in the
structure of environmental responsibility throughout the organisation. By appointing CE and UK Managing Directors, the Chief Executive ensures that responsibility is
held at the highest level. The development and use of environmental key performance indicators allow the monitoring of eco-efficiencies and identification of trends in
improvements. Where strict environmental controls are prescribed, regular programmes of monitoring and testing are undertaken at the Group’ s facilities.
In the UK, auditing and legislation compliance has been the primary focus during the year with appropriate training being provided enabling all sites to carry out internal
audits of their activities. There were no major incidents during the year and no prosecutions. In Continental Europe (CE), work continues to ensure that sites comply with
all relevant legislative measures. Environmental performance indicators have been established with water consumption and emissions showing reductions over the year .
It is the Group’ s intention to introduce its Environmental Management System (EMS) to all manufacturing sites. Over 90% of sites already have EMS and are making
progress towards ISO 14001 accreditation although the rate of progress will vary according to site needs and resource. Specific programmes have been targeted to
introduce energy-saving initiatives; to reduce waste in all processes; to minimise the discharge of liquid and atmospheric effluence; and projects have been initiated to
facilitate the re-use of water . The Group also recognises the need to understand and manage the aspects of biodiversity that are affected by its operations. The biggest
impact on the environment is from the wastewater from the manufacturing processes. None of the Group’ s sites send untreated wastewater directly to the natural
environment. All wastewater is treated in order to make it compatible with its receiving environment. This work has already created significant cost savings as well as
reducing environmental impact.
The EMS covers environmental policy , identification and evaluation of key impacts, setting of measurable objectives and targets. It also encompasses auditing of suppliers
and contractors, documenting of structures and procedures, monitoring and auditing, internal reporting, management review, staff training and awareness measures. An
Environmental Action Plan has also been developed including focus on supplier audits, packaging requirements and Green Claims Code issues.
Objectives for the next twelve-month period include further focus on long-term health risk assessments, reduction of water consumption and of air emissions, and
observance of increasingly stricter soil requirements.
34
Private Label household 
and personal care products Directors’ report continued Independent Auditors’ Report to
the Members of McBride plc
Social responsibility
Environmental, social and ethical performance review continued
During the course of the year , the Group employed an average of 4,061 people of whom 2,040 were employed in the UK. It is the Group’ s policy to ensure equal
opportunity in recruitment, selection, promotion, employee development, training and reward policies and procedures in compliance with legal requirements. The Group
also places great emphasis on establishing and maintaining a safe working environment for its employees. It is a key objective to ensure that successful candidates for
appointment and promotion are selected taking account of individual ability , skills and competencies without regard to gender , race, religion or disability . Full and fair
consideration is given to the employment and opportunities for training and development of people with disabilities according to their skills and capacity . Where
employees become disabled in the course of their employment, they will continue to be employed, wherever practicable, in the same job or , if this is not practicable, every
effort is made to find and to provide appropriate retraining. Where the Group finds it necessary to undertake a restructuring programme, every effort is taken to ensure
that compulsory redundancies are minimised, and relevant support and guidance is provided as appropriate. Decisions are communicated, employees are consulted and
implications for individuals are duly considered.
The Group is committed to employee consultation by way of briefings, listening groups, information bulletins and Company newspapers. In addition, the operating
company management teams regularly visit each of the sites and are available for open questioning from employees. Most sites are actively engaged in involvement
initiatives to help to ensure that all employees understand and relate to the business goals. Open days are held at many sites to allow employee families to see the
environment in which their family members work. 
Community 
The Group actively considers the impact of its operations on the surrounding community and has many initiatives which aim to contribute positively to the local area
wherever possible. Apart from being a significant employer in most areas, the Group also supports economic regeneration, gives advice to smaller companies, supports
local community and education communities and gives financial assistance to community efforts. 
The Group also recognises the importance of maintaining good relationships with the local community . Site General Managers are actively encouraged to maintain positive
relationships, wherever appropriate, with local authorities and regulatory bodies. Where facilities are located in or near to residential areas, the site management have
established neighbourhood schemes to provide a vehicle for local concerns to be heard and to ensure that due recognition is paid to ensuring that there is no unnecessary
nuisance caused to residents. Charities in the locality of the Group’ s facilities benefit from charitable donations and employees regularly offer their services either through
volunteer offices or through mentoring activities with local schools and other bodies. 
In the UK, a close relationship is built with local universities and colleges via bursary students, which often results in active recruitment and partnership/development
opportunities. The Company provides a number of short and long-term industrial placements. An award winning childcare scheme has also been established in
partnership with a local Council. The Group has membership of Business in The Community (BiTC) and runs a Charitable T rust which focuses on educational grants and
donations to other charities. For the year ended 30 June 2003, the Charitable T rust made financial contributions of £2,595. Separately , employees themselves raised over
£12,500 for charity .
Substantial Shareholdings on 10 September 2003
The Company’ s register of substantial interests in shares showed the Company had been notified of the following interests of 3% or more of its issued share capital.
Numbers of Shares Percentage Holdings
INVESCO Asset Management 36,155,940 20.35%
Jupiter Asset Management 12,297,506 6.92%
First Eagle Soc Gen 10,441,812 5.88%
JP Morgan Fleming Asset Management 8,498,763 4.78%
Hermes Pension Management 7,036,195 3.96%
Gartmore Investment Managment 6,401,998 3.60%
Legal & General Investment Managment 6,163,773 3.47%
Barclays Global Investors 6,070,740 3.42%
52.38%
Annual General Meeting
The Annual General Meeting will be held at Haberdashers’ Hall, 18 West Smithfield, London EC1A 9HQ on 4 November 2003 at 12 noon.
The notice convening the meeting is sent to shareholders separately with this report, together with an explanation of the items of special business to be transacted 
at the meeting.
Copies of the annual report and accounts for the year ended 30 June 2003 can be obtained free of charge from the Company’ s registered address.
Auditors
A resolution is to be proposed at the Annual General Meeting for the reappointment of KPMG Audit Plc as auditors of the Company.
By Order of the Board
Mr M Roberts, Secretary
10 September 2003
We have audited the financial statements on pages 38 to 58.
This report is made solely to the Company’ s members, as a body , in accordance with Section 235 of the Companies Act 1985. Our audit work has been undertaken so
that we might state to the Company’ s members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor’ s report and for no other purpose. T o the fullest extent
permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the Company and the Company’ s members as a body, for our audit work, for this
report, or for the opinions we have formed.
Respective Responsibilities of Directors & Auditors
The directors are responsible for preparing the Annual Report. As described on page 27, this includes responsibility for preparing the financial statements in accordance
with applicable United Kingdom law and accounting standards. Our responsibilities, as independent auditors, are established in the United Kingdom by statute, the
Auditing Practices Board, the Listing Rules of the Financial Services Authority , and by our profession’ s ethical guidance.
We report to you our opinion as to whether the financial statements give a true and fair view and are properly prepared in accordance with the Companies Act 1985. 
We also report to you if, in our opinion, the directors’ report is not consistent with the financial statements, if the Company has not kept proper accounting records, if we
have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit, or if information specified by law or the Listing Rules regarding directors’ remuneration
and transactions with the Group is not disclosed.
We read the other information contained in the Annual Report, including the corporate governance statement, and consider whether it is consistent with the audited
financial statements. We consider the implications for our report if we become aware of any apparent misstatements or material inconsistencies with the financial
statements.
Basis of Audit Opinion
We conducted our audit in accordance with Auditing Standards issued by the Auditing Practices Board. An audit includes examination, on a test basis, of evidence relevant
to the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements and the part of the directors’ remuneration report to be audited. It also includes an assessment of the significant
estimates and judgements made by the directors in the preparation of the financial statements, and of whether the accounting policies are appropriate to the Group’ s
circumstances, consistently applied and adequately disclosed.
We planned and performed our audit so as to obtain all the information and explanations which we considered necessary in order to provide us with sufficient evidence 
to give reasonable assurance that the financial statements and the part of the directors’ remuneration report to be audited are free from material misstatement, whether
caused by fraud or other irregularity or error . In forming our opinion, we also evaluated the overall adequacy of the presentation of information in the financial statements
and the part of the directors’ remuneration report to be audited.
Opinion
In our opinion:
• the financial statements give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Company and the Group as at 30 June 2003 and of the profit of the Group for the year
then ended; and
• the financial statements and the part of the directors’ remuneration report to be audited have been properly prepared in accordance with the Companies Act 1985.
KPMG Audit Plc
Chartered Accountants
Registered Auditor
London
10 September 2003
36
Private Label household 
and personal care products
37
McBride plc
The market leaders Consolidated profit and loss account Balance sheet
T otal Total
Y ear ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
Note £m £m
Turnover
Share of joint venture 520.1 500.6
Less: share of joint venture’ s turnover (15.1) (16.6)
Total Group turnover 2 505.0 484.0
Cost of sales (301.5) (297.6)
Gross profit 203.5 186.4
Distribution costs (27.4) (26.2)
Administrative costs:
Before goodwill amortisation (145.0) (134.1)
Goodwill amortisation (1.4) (1.3)
Administrative costs including goodwill amortisation (146.4) (135.4)
Group operating profit 2 29.7 24.8
Share of joint venture’ s operating profit/(loss) 3 0.5 (1.5)
Write-off of goodwill in joint venture 3 – (15.8)
Profit on ordinary activities before interest 30.2 7.5
Group interest receivable and similar income 5 0.6 0.6
Group interest payable and similar charges 5 (4.2) (5.0)
Share of joint venture’ s interest payable and similar charges (0.4) (0.9)
Profit on ordinary activities before taxation 6 26.2 2.2
Group tax on profit on ordinary activities 7 (7.9) (5.6)
Share of joint venture’ s tax credit on ordinary activities – 0.2
Profit/(Loss) on ordinary activities after taxation 18.3 (3.2)
Equity minority interest (0.1) (0.2)
Profit/(Loss) for the year 18.2 (3.4)
Dividends proposed 8 (5.2) (3.7)
Retained profit/(loss) for the year 13.0 (7.1)
Earnings/(Losses) per ordinary share (pence) 9
*   Basic 10.2 (1.9)
*   Diluted 10.1 (1.9)
*   Basic before goodwill amortisation, share of joint venture
and non-operating items 11.0 8.9
Dividend per share (pence) 8 2.9 2.1
Group Group Company Company
As at As at As at As at
30 June 2003 30 June 2002 30 June 2003 30 June 2002
Note £m £m £m £m
Fixed assets
Intangible assets 10 9.0 10.4 – –
T angible assets 11 126.1 135.4 0.1 0.2
Investments 12 – – 165.0 155.0
Total fixed assets 135.1 145.8 165.1 155.2
Current assets
Stocks 13 43.3 46.9 – –
Debtors 14 114.7 110.8 15.2 50.6
Cash at bank and in hand 0.7 1.2 – –
158.7 158.9 15.2 50.6
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year 15 (148.4) (232.0) (8.8) (41.4)
Net current assets/(liabilities) 10.3 (73.1) 6.4 9.2
T otal assets less current liabilities 145.4 72.7 171.5 164.4
Creditors: amounts falling due after more than one year 16 (57.2) (2.4) (5.7) –
Provisions for liabilities and charges 17 (7.9) (3.9) – –
Investment in joint venture:
Share of gross assets 3.4 4.3 – –
Share of gross liabilities (5.1) (6.1) – –
Net investment in joint venture (1.7) (1.8) – –
Net assets 78.6 64.6 165.8 164.4
Capital and reserves
Called up share capital 18 17.8 17.8 17.8 17.8
Share premium account 20 139.3 139.3 139.3 139.3
Profit and loss account 20 (78.5) (92.7) 8.7 7.3
Equity shareholders’ funds 78.6 64.4 165.8 164.4
Equity minority interest – 0.2 – –
T otal shareholders’ funds 78.6 64.6 165.8 164.4
These financial statements were approved by the Board of Directors on 10 September 2003 and were signed on its behalf by:
Mr M Handley
Mr M Roberts
Directors
38
Private Label household 
and personal care products
39
McBride plc
The market leaders Consolidated cash flow statement Consolidated statement of total
recognised gains and losses
Y ear ended Y ear ended Y ear ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2003 30 June 2002 30 June 2002
Note £m £m £m £m
Net cash flow from operating activities 25 61.2 42.3
Returns on investments and servicing of finance 26 (4.3) (4.8)
T axation (6.9) (5.4)
Operating cash flow after taxation and finance costs 50.0 32.1
Capital expenditure
Cash expenditure on fixed assets (8.8) (10.6)
Disposal of fixed assets 0.3 0.1
Net cash outflow on capital expenditure (8.5) (10.5)
Acquisitions and disposals
Cost of refinancing the joint venture – (16.3)
Deferred consideration payments – 1.0
Net cash outflow on acquisitions and disposals – (15.3)
Equity dividends paid (3.7) (3.6)
Cash inflow before financing 37.8 2.7
Financing 27 (33.7) (9.9)
Increase/(Decrease) in cash in the year 28 4.1 (7.2)
Reconciliation of net cash flow
to movement in net debt
Y ear ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
Note £m £m
Increase/(Decrease) in cash in the year 28 4.1 (7.2)
Cash inflow from movement in debt 28 33.3 9.4
Movement on finance leases 28 0.4 0.5
Change in net debt resulting from cash flows 37.8 2.7
T ranslation differences 28 (4.0) (4.4)
Movement in net debt in the year 33.8 (1.7)
Net debt at the beginning of the year (94.9) (93.2)
Net debt at the end of the year (61.1) (94.9)
Year ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Profit/(Loss) for the financial year 18.2 (3.4)
Unrealised foreign currency differences 1.2 0.5
T otal recognised gains and losses relating to the financial year 19.4 (2.9)
Prior year adjustment in respect of the adoption of FRS 19 – Deferred tax – (5.0)
T otal recognised gains and losses since last financial statements 19.4 (7.9)
Reconciliation of movements
in shareholders’ funds
Year ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Opening shareholders’ funds as previously reported 64.4 72.5
Prior year adjustment – FRS 19 Deferred tax – (1.5)
Restated opening balances 64.4 71.0
Profit for the financial year 18.2 (3.4)
Equity dividends (5.2) (3.7)
Unrealised foreign currency differences 1.2 0.5
Closing shareholders’ funds 78.6 64.4
40
Private Label household 
and personal care products
41
McBride plc
The market leaders Stock
Stock is stated at the lower of cost and net realisable value. In determining the cost of raw materials, consumables and goods purchased for resale, standard cost adjusted
for current purchase pricing is used. For work in progress and finished goods manufactured by the Group, cost is taken as production cost which includes 
an appropriate portion of attributable overhead. Net realisable value is based on estimated selling price less all further costs to completion and all relevant marketing, 
selling and distribution costs.
T axation
The charge for taxation is based on the profit for the year and takes into account taxation deferred because of timing differences between the treatment of certain
items for taxation and accounting purposes. Deferred tax is recognised, without discounting, in respect of all timing differences which have arisen but not reversed by
the balance sheet date, except as otherwise required by FRS 19.
Foreign exchange
T ransactions in foreign currencies are recorded using the rate of exchange ruling at the date of the transaction. Monetary assets and liabilities denominated in foreign
currencies are translated using the rate of exchange ruling at the balance sheet date and the gains or losses on translation are included in the profit and loss account. 
For consolidation purposes, the assets and liabilities of overseas subsidiary undertakings are translated at the closing exchange rates. The profit and loss accounts and cash
flows of such undertakings are consolidated at the average rates of exchange during the period. Exchange differences arising on these translations are taken to reserves,
net of exchange differences arising on related foreign currency borrowings.
Leases
Assets acquired under finance leases are capitalised in the balance sheet and depreciated over their useful lives. The interest element is charged to the profit and loss
account over the term of the contract. Operating leases are charged to the profit and loss account on a straight line basis over the life of the operating lease.
Pensions
The Group operates two material defined benefit pension schemes for UK employees, both of which are closed to new employees: the Robert McBride Pension Fund, and
the Robert McBride Barrow Site Retirement Benefit Scheme.
The assets of all the schemes are held separately from those of the Group in independently administered funds. The regular cost of providing defined benefits are charged
to profit in accordance with SSAP 24 – Accounting for pension costs, over the period benefiting from employee service. The notes to the accounts contain additional
information as required by FRS 17 – Retirement benefits, under the transitional rules. Variations from regular cost are spread over the remaining service lives of employees
in the schemes. The pension cost is assessed by independent qualified actuaries.
Financial instruments
The Group does not enter into speculative derivative contracts. All instruments are used for hedging purposes to alter the risk profile of an existing underlying exposure 
of the Group in line with the Group’ s risk management policies. Amounts payable or receivable in respect of interest rate swaps are recognised as adjustments to interest
expense over the period of the contracts. 
T ransactions denominated in foreign currencies are recorded at the rate ruling on the date of the transaction, unless matching forward foreign exchange contracts have
been entered into, in which case the rate specified in the relevant contract is used. At the balance sheet date unhedged monetary assets and liabilities denominated in
foreign currencies are translated at the rate of exchange ruling at that date.
Research and development expenditure
Expenditure on research and development is charged to the profit and loss account in the period in which it is incurred.
43
McBride plc
The market leaders
Notes to the financial statements
1 Accounting policies
The following accounting policies have been applied consistently in dealing with the items that are considered material to the Group's financial statements. The financial
statements are prepared in accordance with applicable UK accounting standards. The particular accounting policies adopted by the directors are described below except
that the directors have invoked the true and fair over-ride when reporting the value of investments, as fully explained in note 12 to these accounts.
The phased adoption of FRS 17 – Retirements benefits involves significant disclosure changes to both the profit and loss account and balance sheet. The Accounting
Standards Board have deferred full implementation to periods starting on or after 1 January 2005. The company is required and continues to apply SSAP 24 – Accounting for
pension costs for reporting profit and loss and balance sheet items and in addition provides the additional FRS 17 disclosure under the transitional requirements.
Basis of preparation
The financial statements are prepared under the historical cost convention.
Basis of consolidation
The Group financial statements consolidate the financial statements of McBride plc and all its subsidiary undertakings. These financial statements are made up to
30 June 2003.
On the acquisition of a business, including an interest in an associated undertaking, fair values are attributed to the Group's share of the separable assets. Where the
fair value of consideration given and associated costs exceed the fair values attributable to these assets the difference is treated as goodwill and capitalised in the balance
sheet in the year of acquisition. 
The results and cash flows relating to a business are included in the consolidated profit and loss account and the consolidated cash flow statement from the date of
acquisition and up to the date of disposal.
Turnover
Turnover represents the amounts, excluding value added tax, derived from the provision of goods and services to third party customers during the period.
Goodwill
For acquisitions of a business, purchased goodwill is capitalised in the year in which it arises and is amortised in equal installments over its useful economic life up to
a maximum of 20 years.
The profit or loss on the disposal of a business includes the attributable amount of any goodwill relating to that business not previously charged through the profit and 
loss account.
Capitalised goodwill in respect of subsidiaries is included within intangible fixed assets. In accordance with FRS 10, the value of goodwill will be subject to review at the end
of the first financial year following acquisition and may be subject to review at the end of the accounting period in which events or changes of circumstances indicate that
the carrying value may not be recoverable.
Goodwill that arose on businesses acquired prior to the introduction of FRS 10, in the year commencing 1 July 1998 will remain written off to reserves. In the event of
subsequent disposal of any of these businesses, the attributable goodwill will be charged or credited in the profit and loss account in determining the profit or loss on sale.
A credit of an equal amount to reserves ensures that there is no impact on shareholders’ funds.
Fixed assets and depreciation
Depreciation is provided to write off the cost less the estimated residual value of tangible fixed assets by equal installments over their estimated useful economic lives 
as follows:
Freehold buildings – 50 years
Leasehold land and buildings – life of lease
Plant and machinery – 8 to 10 years
Computer equipment (including software) – 3 to 5 years
Motor vehicles – 4 years
No depreciation is provided on freehold land or assets in the course of construction. Where an estimate of the useful lives of assets is revised, the remaining net book value
at the date of revision is written off over the revised estimated useful life.
Investments
In the consolidated accounts, the Group equity accounts for its subsidiaries. The Group’ s share of its investment in Aerosol Products Limited is shown as 50% of the 
net liabilities.
42
Private Label household 
and personal care products 2 Segmental Information continued
Year ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Operating profit by geographical origin is analysed as follows:
UK 16.8 15.0
Continental Europe 12.9 9.8
Group operating profit 29.7 24.8
Non-operating items 0.1 (18.2)
Net interest payable (3.6) (4.4)
Profit on ordinary activities before tax 26.2 2.2
The UK business includes total goodwill amortisation of £1.2 million.
The Continental Europe business includes goodwill amortisation of £0.2 million.
Year ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Operating profit by class of business is analysed as follows:
Continuing operations:
Household products 25.5 21.1
Personal care products 4.2 3.7
Group operating profit 29.7 24.8
Non-operating items 0.1 (18.2)
Net interest payable (3.6) (4.4)
Profit on ordinary activities before tax 26.2 2.2
The household products business includes goodwill amortisation of £1.4 million.
Year ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Non-operating items consist of the following:
Share of joint venture’ s operating profit/(loss) 0.5 (1.2)
Share of joint venture’ s goodwill amortisation – (0.3)
Write-off of goodwill in joint venture – (15.8)
Share of joint venture’ s interest payable and similar charges (0.4) (0.9)
T otal non-operating items before tax 0.1 (18.2)
Share of joint venture’ s tax credit on ordinary activities – 0.2
T otal non-operating items after tax 0.1 (18.0)
Year ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Net assets by geographical origin are analysed as follows:
Continuing operations:
UK 68.9 82.2
Continental Europe 83.9 84.9
T otal operating assets and liabilities 152.8 167.1
Non-operating liabilities (74.2) (102.5)
Net assets 78.6 64.6
Non-operating liabilities include cash less short and long-term borrowings, provisions for liabilities and charges and dividends. It is not possible to provide an analysis of
the net assets by class of business as a number of the Group’ s operating sites manufacture both Private Label household and personal care products.
45
McBride plc
The market leaders
Notes to the financial statements continued
Exchange rates
The exchange rates against sterling used for the periods were as follows:
Y ear ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
Average rate:
Euro 1.52 1.61
Polish Zloty 6.29 5.94
Czech Koruna 47.05 52.05
Hungarian Forint 371.0 398.7
As at As at
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
Closing rate:
Euro 1.44 1.54
Polish Zloty 6.44 6.18
Czech Koruna 45.39 45.08
Hungarian Forint 382.6 377.8
2 Segmental Information
Y ear ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Turnover by destination is analysed by geographical area as follows:
UK 228.5 228.5
Continental Europe 272.9 251.3
Rest of world 3.6 4.2
Group turnover 505.0 484.0
Share of joint venture’ s turnover 15.1 16.6
Turnover by destination 520.1 500.6
Turnover by geographical origin is analysed as follows:
UK 235.8 243.1
Continental Europe 269.2 240.9
Group turnover 505.0 484.0
Share of joint venture’ s turnover 15.1 16.6
Turnover by origin 520.1 500.6
Turnover by class of business is analysed as follows:
Household products 433.9 415.2
Personal care products 71.1 68.8
Group turnover 505.0 484.0
Share of joint venture’ s turnover 15.1 16.6
T otal turnover by class of business 520.1 500.6
44
Private Label household 
and personal care products 7Taxation
T axation on the profit of the Group.
Year ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
UK corporation tax at 30% 6.0 4.2
Overseas taxation – current 5.4 1.7
Utilisation of prior period provisions – –
Current tax charge for the year 11.4 5.9
UK deferred tax (8.0) (2.5)
Overseas taxation – deferred 4.5 2.2
Deferred tax movement for the year (3.5) (0.3)
Group tax on profit on ordinary activities 7.9 5.6
Current tax is reconciled to a notional 30% of profit before taxation as follows:
Expected tax charge 8.0 6.5
Overseas tax rates 0.8 0.8
Losses utilised (0.2) (1.6)
Timing differences – other 1.9 0.7
Permanent differences 1.0 0.5
Adjustments to tax charge in respect of prior periods (0.7) (0.9)
Other 0.6 (0.1)
Current tax charge for the year 11.4 5.9
The effective tax rate of 29% reflects a combination of inherited tax losses, movements on deferred tax, and the recovery of Advance Corporation T ax (ACT) .
8 Dividends
Year ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Dividends on ordinary shares:
– Proposed Interim dividend (0.8 pence per share) (2002 – 0.7 pence) 1.4 1.3
– Proposed Final (2.1 pence per share) (2002 – 1.4 pence) 3.8 2.4
T otal dividends 5.2 3.7
The interim dividend was paid on 4 July 2003.
9 Earnings per ordinary share
Basic earnings per share
Earnings per ordinary share is calculated on profit after tax and minority interest in accordance with FRS 14.
The calculation of earnings per ordinary share for the year ended 30 June 2003 is based on 177,639,197 ordinary shares of 10 pence each which is the weighted average
number of ordinary shares in issue during the year (2002 – 177,639,197).
Fully diluted earnings per share
Diluted earnings per share is calculated by adjusting the weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue on the assumption of conversion of all dilutive potential
ordinary shares. The company has two categories of dilutive potential ordinary shares, those share options issued whose market price and exercise price is less than the
average price of the Company’ s ordinary shares during the year and shares allocated to an approved Save As Y ou Earn scheme.
Year ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
Millions Millions
Weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue 177.6 177.6
Effect of dilutive share options 0.8 –
Effect of dilutive SA YE scheme shares 1.9 –
T otal number of shares for the purposes of calculating diluted earnings per share 180.3 177.6
47
McBride plc
The market leaders
Notes to the financial statements continued
3 Aerosol Products Limited joint venture
On 5 November 1999 a joint venture, Aerosol Products Limited (APL) was set up from the Hull site of Robert McBride Limited and the Thetford site of Nichol Beauty
Products Limited. In 2002, the ownership of APL was restructured, with the 50% previously held by Nichol Beauty Products Limited transferred to, and held equally
between The Royal Bank of Scotland and Credit Agricole Indosuez. APL remains a joint venture and as such, its results are included in compliance with FRS 9 – Associates
and joint ventures.
Due to the nature of the restructuring between the Group, RBS and CAI, both a profit on disposal and a goodwill on acquisition were generated. However , the directors of
McBride believe that as these transactions are the result of a single legal agreement the transactions are so interlinked that to disclose a profit on disposal and goodwill on
re-acquisition separately would be misleading and therefore, the net effect of the restructuring being £15.8 million was reflected in the 2002 financial statements as a
write-off of goodwill.
4T ransactions with related party
The Group's related party is its joint venture, Aerosol Products Limited. 
During the year , Robert McBride Limited purchased £30.1 million (2002 – £33.2 million) of finished goods from APL for resale on behalf of APL, under a management
agreement whereby Robert McBride Limited is responsible for onward sales and sales ledger management. The total balance of stock held under this arrangement
by Robert McBride Limited as at 30 June 2003 was £2.3 million (2002 – £2.9 million).
5Group interest analysis
Y ear ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
Group Group
£m £m
Interest receivable and similar income 0.6 0.6
Interest payable on bank loans and overdrafts (4.1) (4.9)
Finance leases (0.1) (0.1)
Interest payable and similar charges (4.2) (5.0)
T otal Group finance and interest cost (3.6) (4.4)
6Profit on ordinary activities before taxation
Profit on ordinary activities before taxation is stated after charging:
Y ear ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
Group Group
£m £m
Auditors’ remuneration:
– Audit services 0.3 0.3
– Further Assurance Services – –
– T ax – Compliance 0.1 0.1
– T ax – Advisory 0.1 0.2
– Other Services – 0.1
Depreciation and other amounts written off owned tangible fixed assets 21.7 18.4
Depreciation and other amounts written off leased tangible fixed assets 0.2 0.2
Hire of plant and machinery – rentals payable under operating leases 1.1 1.1
Hire of other assets – rentals payable under operating leases 0.2 0.3
Loss on sale of tangible fixed assets 0.1 0.1
Audit services for the Company total £0.1 million (2002 – £0.1 million).
46
Private Label household 
and personal care products 11 T angible fixed assets
Plant and
machinery , Payments 
Land and computer on account
Land and buildings equipment and assets in
buildings Long and motor the course of
Freehold leasehold vehicles construction T otal
£m £m £m £m £m
Cost
At 1 July 2002 70.2 2.6 199.2 1.8 273.8
Exchange adjustments 0.7 – 5.9 0.1 6.7
Additions 0.5 0.1 7.3 0.9 8.8
Disposals (2.0) – (3.9) – (5.9)
Transfers –– 0.4 (0.4) –
At 30 June 2003 69.4 2.7 208.9 2.4 283.4
Depreciation
At 1 July 2002 (15.3) (0.5) (122.6) – (138.4)
Exchange adjustments (0.6) (0.1) (1.8) – (2.5)
Charge for the year (1.6) (0.1) (20.2) – (21.9)
Disposals 1.7 – 3.8 – 5.5
Transfers –––––
At 30 June 2003 (15.8) (0.7) (140.8) – (157.3)
Net book value
At 1 July 2002 54.9 2.1 76.6 1.8 135.4
At 30 June 2003 53.6 2.0 68.1 2.4 126.1
Company assets
There was no significant movement in the Company’ s tangible fixed assets which were £0.1 million at 30 June 2003 (2002 – £0.2million).
12 Investments
Group £m
Investment in joint venture
At 1 July 2002 –
At 30 June 2003 –
Company £m
Shares in subsidiary undertakings at cost
At 1 July 2002 155.0
Additions 10.0
At 30 June 2003 165.0
The additions in investment for the Company represent the investment in McBride Euro Finance Limited, a new Group company created during the year .
During the year , the business assets of McBride Aircare Limited were transferred to Robert McBride Limited. Both companies are ultimately wholly owned subsidiary
companies of McBride plc. The cost of the Company's investment in that subsidiary undertaking reflected the underlying fair value of its net assets and goodwill at the
time of acquisition. No adjustment has been made to the combined carrying value of the Company's investments in these subsidiaries or reflected in the Group's financial
statements. Schedule 4 of the Companies Act 1985 requires that the investment be written down and that the amount be charged as a loss in the Company's profit and
loss account. However , if the adjustment were made the directors consider that as there has been no loss to the Company it would fail to give a true and fair view of the
Company's profit and loss account for the year . The trade and assets have simply been transferred from one wholly owned subsidiary to another . Therefore, the directors
consider that this policy is necessary to present a true and fair view as to the Company's trading performance and have invoked the true and fair override for the 
presentation of these financial statements.
49
McBride plc
The market leaders
Notes to the financial statements continued
9 Earnings per ordinary share continued
Adjusted basic earnings per share before goodwill amortisation and non-operating items
Adjusted earnings per share is shown by reference to earnings before goodwill amortisation, share of joint venture and non-operating items since the directors consider
that this gives a more meaningful measure of the underlying performance of the Group. Earnings before goodwill amortisation and non-operating items are calculated
as follows:
Y ear ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Earnings/(Losses) used to calculate Basic and Diluted EPS 18.2 (3.4)
Write-off of goodwill in joint venture (see note 2) – 15.8
Earnings used to calculate Basic EPS before goodwill write-off 18.2 12.4
Goodwill amortisation 1.4 1.3
Non-operating items after tax (see note 2) (0.1) 2.2
Adjusted earnings 19.5 15.9
Earnings per share Earnings per share
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
pence pence
Basic EPS 10.2 (1.9)
Write-off of goodwill in joint venture (see note 2) – 8.9
Basic EPS before the write-off of goodwill 10.2 7.0
Goodwill amortisation 0.8 0.7
Non-operating items after tax (see note 2) – 1.2
Basic EPS before goodwill and non-operating items 11.0 8.9
Diluted earnings per ordinary share 10.1 (1.9)
10 Intangible assets: Goodwill
Total
£m
Cost
At 1 July 2002 14.2
Additions –
Disposals –
At 30 June 2003 14.2
Amortisation
At 1 July 2002 (3.8)
Charge for the year (1.4)
Disposals –
At 30 June 2003 (5.2)
Net book value
At 1 July 2002 10.4
At 30 June 2003 9.0
In accordance with the accounting policy for goodwill, described in note 1, goodwill arising on acquisitions since 1 July 1998 has been capitalised and is being amortised
over 20 years, except that goodwill on the acquisition of the liquids business of Nichol Beauty Products Limited and the assets of Valley Chemicals Limited are being
amortised over 5 years.
48
Private Label household 
and personal care products 15 Creditors: Amounts falling due within one year
Group Group Company Company
As at As at As at As at
30 June 2003 30 June 2002 30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m £m £m
Bank overdrafts (unsecured) 4.2 8.2 0.9 0.8
Bank loans – 85.1 – 31.3
Finance leases 0.4 0.4 – –
T rade creditors 75.8 74.2 0.2 0.6
Amounts owed to Group undertaking – – 1.0 4.0
Corporation tax payable 3.1 1.4 – –
Other taxation and social security 9.8 12.4 – –
Other creditors 17.0 14.9 – –
Accruals and deferred income 32.9 31.7 1.5 1.0
Dividends proposed on equity shares 5.2 3.7 5.2 3.7
T otal creditors falling due within one year 148.4 232.0 8.8 41.4
In 2002 a five-year , revolving credit, multicurrency facility of £90 million along with a two-and-a-half-year £20 million invoice selling facility were negotiated, replacing a
£125 million facility that was due for renewal by April 2003. The borrowings under the new credit facility are included within creditors falling due after more than
one year . The Group’ s borrowings disclosed in the 2002 financial statements are disclosed under creditors due in less than one year as that facility was due to expire
within 12 months of the June 2002 financial year end. The margin on the five-year facility varies between 130bps and 95bps depending on the Company’ s
financial performance.
16 Creditors: Amounts falling due after more than one year
Group Group Company Company
As at As at As at As at
30 June 2003 30 June 2002 30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m £m £m
Bank loans 55.0 – 5.7 –
Finance leases 2.2 2.4 – –
T otal creditors falling due after more than one year 57.2 2.4 5.7 –
These are repayable by installments:
Between one and two years 0.3 0.4 – –
Between two and five years 55.9 0.9 5.7 –
After five years 1.0 1.1 – –
T otal creditors falling due after more than one year 57.2 2.4 5.7 –
The rates of interest payable on all borrowings are typically between LIBOR plus 0.85% and 1.30%.
17 Provisions for liabilities and charges
Group Company
Deferred Group Group Deferred Company Company
TaxOther T otal T ax Other T otal
£m £m £m £m £m £m
At 1 July 2002 3.5 0.4 3.9–––
Created during the year 0.1 3.9 4.0–––
At 30 June 2003 3.6 4.3 7.9–––
‘Other’ provisions relate to pension contributions paid by Grada BV which were provided for on acquisition, closure costs for the Institutional and Industrial business,
the cost associated with a number of leasehold dilapidations and provisions relating to a number of legal disputes.
The amount of the full potential deferred taxation provision can be analysed as follows:
As at As at
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
Group £m £m
Difference between accumulated depreciation and capital allowances 14.6 12.2
Other timing differences (11.0) (8.7)
Potential deferred tax liability 3.6 3.5
Included within other timing differences are amounts in relation to unutilisesd losses and available ACT assets.
51
McBride plc
The market leaders
Notes to the financial statements continued
12 Investments continued
Set out below are the principal subsidiary undertakings of the Group whose results are included in the Group financial statements as at 30 June 2003. The share capital 
of these undertakings, comprising ordinary shares, is wholly owned by the Group with the exception of Intersilesia Sp. Z.o.o. which is 85% owned by the Group. 
All subsidiaries incorporated in Great Britain are registered in England and Wales.
The main business activity of the operating subsidiaries involves the manufacture and distribution of household and personal care products. A full list of subsidiaries
is filed with the Registrar of Companies.
Company Ownership Country of incorporation
Subsidiaries
Robert McBride Ltd* 100% Great Britain
Yplon S.A.S. 100% France
Yplon N.V ./S.A. 100% Belgium
General Detergents S.p.A. 100% Italy
Productos Quimicos Arco Iris S.A. 100% Spain
Grada B.V . 100% Netherlands
T rimoteur Operations Europe B.V . 100% Netherlands
Problanc S.A. 100% France
Intersilesia Sp. Z.o.o. 85% Poland
Vitherm S.A. 100% France
McBride Aircare Ltd 100% Great Britain
McBride Hungary Kft 100% Hungary
McBride S.r .o. 100% Czech Republic
McBride Euro Finance Ltd 100% Great Britain
Joint venture
Aerosol Products Ltd 50% Great Britain
Investment companies
McBride Holdings Ltd* 100% Great Britain
McBride CE Holdings Ltd* 100% Great Britain
* These companies are wholly owned subsidiary undertakings of McBride plc, the Company .
All other companies are wholly owned by the Group, except for Intersilesia Sp. Z.o.o. which is 85% owned and Aerosol Products Ltd which is a 50% joint venture.
The country of incorporation is also the principal country of operation.
13 Stock
Group Group
As at As at
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Raw materials/packaging and consumables 19.1 17.4
Work in progress 2.1 1.0
Finished goods and goods for resale 22.1 28.5
T otal stocks 43.3 46.9
14 Debtors
Group Group Company Company
As at As at As at As at
30 June 2003 30 June 2002 30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m £m £m
Amounts falling due within one year
T rade debtors 110.0 103.4 – –
Amounts owed by Group undertakings – – 14.3 50.4
Other debtors 2.3 5.6 – –
Prepayments and accrued income 2.4 1.8 0.9 0.2
T otal debtors 114.7 110.8 15.2 50.6
50
Private Label household 
and personal care products 21 Commitments
Group Group Company Company
Y ear ended Y ear ended Year ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002 30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m £m £m
Capital expenditure
Contracted but not provided 0.6 – – – 
Operating leases
Payments under operating leases due to be made in the next year , analysed over periods when the leases expire are as follows:
Land and buildings
Within one year – 0.5 – –
In the second to fifth years inclusive – – – –
Over five years – – – –
– 0.5 – –
Others
Within one year 0.7 0.3 – – 
In the second to fifth years inclusive 1.9 0.7 – – 
Over five years – – – – 
2.6 1.0 – – 
22 Remuneration of directors
Year ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£000 £000
Emoluments 973 780
Pension contributions 232 185
T otal remuneration 1,205 965
Further analysis of the above amounts and information concerning directors’ shareholdings and options are shown on pages 28 to 33 in the Remuneration Report.
The total emoluments of the highest paid director (including pension contributions) was £723,000 (2002 – £632,000).
Number of Number of
Directors Directors
June 2003 June 2002
Retirement benefits are accruing to the following number of directors under:
Money purchase schemes 2 2
Defined benefit scheme – –
T otal 2 2
53
McBride plc
The market leaders
Notes to the financial statements continued
18 Called up share capital
Group Group Company Company
As at As at As at As at
30 June 2003 30 June 2002 30 June 2003 30 June 2002
Number Number £m £m
Authorised
Ordinary shares of 10 pence each 500,000,000 500,000,000 50.0 50.0
As at As at As at As at
30 June 2003 30 June 2002 30 June 2003 30 June 2002
Number Number £m £m
Allotted, called up and fully paid
Ordinary shares of 10 pence each 177,639,197 177,639,197 17.8 17.8
No shares were issued during the year .
19 Share options
There are existing options issued during the 2001/02 financial year to senior employees, but excluding the executive directors, to subscribe for up to 5,312,811 ordinary
shares (2002 – 5,467,850 shares) at 58.5 pence under the 1995 executive Share Option Scheme. These options are exercisable between September 2005 and September
2012. In addition, their remain options issued in July 1995, exercisable between July 1998 and July 2005, for up to 2,347,784 ordinary shares (2002 – 2,402,699 shares) 
at £1.88.
The total number of options under the scheme totalled 9,191,043 ordinary shares as at 30 June 2003 (2002 – 7,870,549 shares), and 9,191,043 on 10 September 2003.
During the year , a total of 596 employees subscribed to the Group's SA YE scheme. As at 30 June 2003 a combined total of 5,794,151 options were held within the
3-year and 5-year SA YE schemes.
20 Movement on reserves
Share Profit
premium and loss
account account
Group £m £m
At 1 July 2002 139.3 (92.7)
Retained Profit for the financial year – 13.0
Unrealised foreign currency differences – 1.2
At 30 June 2003 139.3 (78.5)
Share Profit
premium and loss
account account
Company £m £m
At 1 July 2002 139.3 7.3
Retained profit for the financial year – 1.4
At 30 June 2003 139.3 8.7
In accordance with the exemption allowed by Section 230 of the Companies Act 1985 the Company has not presented its own profit and loss account. The Company
made a profit for the year of £6.6 million before dividends payable of £5.2 million in the year to 30 June 2003.
As at As at
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
Group £m £m
Goodwill eliminated directly against reserves (146.4) (146.4)
Cumulative retained profit 67.9 53.7
Profit and loss account (78.5) (92.7)
Under FRS 10 the Group is required to show the profit and loss account and goodwill written off as a single merged figure on the consolidated balance sheet. The above
note analyses the Group profit and loss account. In addition to the goodwill written off directly against profit and loss reserves of £146.4 million, £2.5 million has been
written off against the merger reserve giving a total of £148.9 million written off against reserves.
52
Private Label household 
and personal care products Analysis of the amount that would be charged to operating profit:
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Current service cost 2.0 2.9
Past service cost – –
Loss/(Gain) on curtailment – –
T otal operating charge 2.0 2.9
Analysis of the amount that would be credited to other finance income:
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Expected return on pension scheme assets 2.4 2.5
Interest on pension scheme liabilities (2.5) (2.3)
Net Return (0.1) 0.2
Analysis of amount that would be recognised in statement of total recognised gains and losses (STRGL):
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Actual return less expected return on pension scheme assets (6.6) (4.2)
Experience gains and losses arising on the scheme liabilities (0.9) –
Changes in assumptions underlying the present value of the scheme liabilities (0.2) 0.7
Actuarial loss recognised in the STRGL (7.7) (3.5)
Movement in surplus/(deficit) during the year:
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Deficit in scheme at start of year (6.7) (2.1)
Movement in the year:
Current service cost (2.0) (2.9)
Contributions 1.7 1.7
Past service costs – –
Other finance income (0.1) 0.1
Actuarial loss (7.7) (3.5)
Curtailment – –
Deficit in scheme at year end (14.8) (6.7)
Following the full actuarial valuation at 31 March 2003, employer contributions have yet to be agreed. Different rates are payable in respect of the different sections of the
scheme, averaging 11.0 per cent of total pensionable pay . Active members of the Contributory Section pay on average at the rate of 4.5 per cent of pensionable pay .
History of experience gains and losses 30 June 2003 30 June 2002
Difference between the expected and actual return on scheme assets:
Amount (£m) (6.6) (4.2)
Percentage of the scheme assets -20.0% -11.9%
Experience gains and losses on scheme liabilities:
Amount (£m) (0.9) –
Percentage of the present value of the scheme liabilities -1.8% 0.0%
Total amount recognised in statement of total recognised gains and losses:
Amount (£m) (7.7) (3.5)
Percentage of the present value of the scheme liabilities -16.1% -8.3%
55
McBride plc
The market leaders
Notes to the financial statements continued
23 Pension schemes
The total Pensions cost for the Group disclosed under SSAP 24 – Accounting for pension costs, in note 24 to the accounts were:
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
United Kingdom – defined benefit schemes 1.9 1.8
United Kingdom – defined contribution schemes 0.2 0.2
Continental Europe – defined contribution schemes 0.5 0.3
T otal pension contribution 2.6 2.3
The actuarial value of the assets of the scheme represented approximately 80% of the liabilities for the benefits that had accrued to members, after allowing for expected
future increases in earnings.
The assets of the plans are held in separately administered trusts. Pension plan assets are managed by independent professional investment managers. The actuarial
valuation noted above takes into account the impact of changes to Advanced Corporation T ax in the UK that took effect from 2 July 1997.
Other than the pension schemes described above, the Group does not operate any form of post retirement benefits.
FRS 17 – Retirement benefits
As required under FRS 17 – Retirement benefits, the Group has adopted the new disclosure guidelines that were issued in November 2000. 
The objective of the new FRS is to reflect at fair value the assets and liabilities arising from an employer’ s retirement benefit obligations, to better reflect the operating costs
of providing those benefits and to ensure adequate disclosure of these items.
The Group operates a number of pension schemes. Within the UK, the Robert McBride Pension Fund, which is a defined benefits scheme, covers most of the Group’ s UK
employees. In addition, the Group operates a number of smaller pension schemes in Continental Europe that are devised in accordance with local conditions and practices
in the countries concerned.
In line with many other companies, the directors of McBride have considered the potential uncertainty and long-term cost to the Group of continuing to offer a defined
benefits pension scheme. Accordingly , last year the Board closed, to new entrants, the Robert McBride Pension Fund and established a new defined contributions scheme
for UK employees.
The Company operates a defined benefit pension scheme in the UK. A full actuarial valuation was carried out as at 31 March 2003. The results of that valuation have been
projected to 30 June 2003 and then updated based on the following assumptions:
As at As at As at
30 June 2003 30 June 2002 30 June 2001
Rate of increase in salaries 4.00% 4.25% 5.00%
LPI increases for pensions in payment 2.40% 2.50% 2.50%
Liability discount rate 5.40% 5.75% 6.00%
Inflation assumption 2.50% 2.75% 2.75%
Revaluation of deferred pensions 2.50% 2.75% 2.75%
The assumptions used by the actuary are the best estimates chosen from a range of possible actuarial assumptions, which, due to the timescale covered, may not
necessarily be borne out in practice. 
The fair value of the scheme’ s assets, which are not intended to be realised in the short-term and may be subject to significant change before they are realised, and the
present value of the scheme’ s liabilities, were:
Long-term Long-term
rate of return V alue at rate of return Value at
expected at 30 June 2003 expected at 30 June 2002
30 June 2003 £m 30 June 2002 £m
Equities 6.50% 25.2 7.00% 28.7
Bonds 4.50% 4.5 5.00% 4.8
Property 6.50% 1.2 7.00% 1.1
Cash 4.50% 2.0 5.00% 1.0
T otal market value of assets 32.9 35.6
Present value of scheme liabilities (47.7) (42.3)
Deficit in the scheme (14.8) (6.7)
Related deferred tax asset 4.4 2.0
Net pension liability (10.4) (4.7)
54
Private Label household 
and personal care products 28 Analysis of net debt
Other
As at non-cash Exchange As at
1 July 2002 Cash flow movements movement 30 June 2003
£m £m £m £m £m
Cash in hand 1.2 (0.3) – (0.2) 0.7
Overdrafts (8.2) 4.4 – (0.4) (4.2)
(7.0) 4.1 – (0.6) (3.5)
Debt: Due after one year – (51.8) – (3.2) (55.0)
Debt: Due within one year (85.1) 85.1 – – –
Finance leases (2.8) 0.4 – (0.2) (2.6)
Net cash/(debt) (94.9) 37.8 – (4.0) (61.1)
Other
As at non-cash Exchange As at
1 July 2001 Cash flow movements movement 30 June 2002
£m £m £m £m £m
Cash in hand 2.7 (1.5) – – 1.2
Overdrafts (2.3) (5.7) – (0.2) (8.2)
0.4 (7.2) – (0.2) (7.0)
Debt: Due after one year (87.7) 6.5 85.2 (4.0) –
Debt: Due within one year (2.9) 2.9 (85.1) – (85.1)
Finance leases (3.0) 0.5 (0.1) (0.2) (2.8)
Net cash/(debt) (93.2) 2.7 – (4.4) (94.9)
29 Contingent liabilities
The Group has a contingent liability of £1.2 million arising from the purchase agreement that entitles the minority interest holder of Intersilesia Sp. Z.o.o. to request
the purchase of shares at a valuation, derived by formula, based upon business performance.
Intersilesia has performed well against the criteria. As a result, the valuation has reached its contractual limit of £1.2 million. There remains uncertainty as to when the
minority interest holder will exercise the right to sell the minority stake, but in any event, this will be by 30 June 2005.
30 Financial instruments
Funding
Other than those noted below in the net borrowings analysis, there are no differences between current and book values of financial instruments held by the Group at the
year end.
Foreign Exchange
Gains and losses arising from these exposures will be recognised in the profit and loss account. The amounts in the table take into account the effect of forward contracts
used to manage these exposures.
Net borrowings analysis
As at As at As at As at
30 June 2003 30 June 2003 30 June 2002 30 June 2002
Book value Fair value Book value Fair value
£m £m £m £m
Bank loans, overdrafts and other loans (59.2) (59.2) (93.3) (93.3)
Finance lease liabilities (2.6) (2.6) (2.8) (2.8)
T otal gross borrowings (61.8) (61.8) (96.1) (96.1)
Cash at bank and in hand 0.7 0.7 1.2 1.2
T otal net borrowings (61.1) (61.1) (94.9) (94.9)
Forward exchange contracts – 0.5 ––
(61.1) (60.6) (94.9) (94.9)
57
McBride plc
The market leaders
Notes to the financial statements continued
24 Staff numbers and costs
The average number of persons employed by the Group (including directors) during the year , analysed by category , was as follows:
Y ear ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
Number Number
Operations 3,352 3,532
Sales and marketing 215 213
Finance and administration 494 489
T otal full-time equivalent employees 4,061 4,234
Y ear ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
The aggregate payroll costs were:
Wages and salaries 76.7 71.4
Social security costs 16.0 14.7
Pension costs (see note 23) 2.6 2.3
T otal payroll costs 95.3 88.4
25 Reconciliation of operating profit to operating cash flow
Y ear ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Group operating profit 29.7 24.8
Depreciation 21.9 18.6
Goodwill amortisation 1.4 1.3
Loss on disposal of fixed assets 0.1 0.1
Movement in stock 5.3 3.3
Movement in debtors 1.4 (9.6)
Movement in creditors 1.4 3.8
Net cash flow from operating activities 61.2 42.3
26 Returns on investments and servicing of finance
Y ear ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Interest received 1.0 0.7
Interest paid (4.3) (5.1)
Interest element of finance lease rentals paid (0.1) (0.1)
Commitment fees paid on completion of the new revolver facility (0.7) –
Dividend paid to minority interest (0.2) (0.3)
Total cash outflow from returns on investment and servicing of finance (4.3) (4.8)
27 Financing
Y ear ended Y ear ended
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
£m £m
Decrease in debt (33.3) (9.4)
Capital element of finance lease rental payments (0.4) (0.5)
Net cash outflow from financing (decrease in financing) (33.7) (9.9)
56
Private Label household 
and personal care products 59
McBride plc
The market leaders
Notes to the financial statements continued
30 Financial instruments continued
Currency analysis of net assets
As at As at
30 June 2003 30 June 2002
Net assets As at As at Net assets As at As at
excluding 30 June 2003 30 June 2003 excluding 30 June 2002 30 June 2002
gross Gross Net gross Gross Net
borrowings borrowings assets borrowings borrowings assets
£m £m £m £m £m £m
Sterling 92.0 (16.1) 75.9 81.7 (40.5) 41.2
Eurozone currencies 48.5 (45.7) 2.8 72.4 (55.6) 16.8
Other (0.1) – (0.1) 6.6 – 6.6
T otal net assets 140.4 (61.8) 78.6 160.7 (96.1) 64.6
Currency exposure
As indicated on page 11 of the Group Finance Director’ s review, it is the objective of the Group to minimise currency risk by hedging its currency exposure. The most
significant exposure is from its net investments in overseas subsidiaries. This exposure is managed through a combination of foreign currency borrowings and forward
currency contracts. As the level of borrowings have reduced, it has been necessary to use forward currency contracts in addition to borrowings to hedge the Company’ s
Euro and Zloty denominated currency exposure.
The net monetary assets/(liabilities) that are not denominated in their functional currency are shown below. Gains or losses arising from these exposures will be recognised
in the profit & loss account. The amounts in the tables take into account the effect of forward contracts used to manage these exposures.
Sterling Euro Zloty T otal
30 June 2003 £m £m £m £m
United Kingdom – 3.0 – 3.0
Euro-zone countries 3.8 – – 3.8
Poland – (6.1) – (6.1)
T otal 3.8 (3.1) 0.0 (0.7)
Sterling Euro Zloty T otal
30 June 2002 £m £m £m £m
United Kingdom – 0.9 – 0.9
Euro-zone countries 4.0 – – 4.0
Poland – (5.7) – (5.7)
T otal 4.0 (4.8) 0.0 (0.8)
Group hedging
The Group operates significant trading assets in Continental Europe, denominated in Euros and in other Eastern European countries. As a consequence, the Group has
significant exposure to movements in exchange rates. In order to hedge these exposures, the Company provides foreign currency inter-company loans in order to hedge
the Group's net foreign currency assets. Where borrowings are insufficient to hedge the net asset exposure, the Company uses forward contracts to hedge the remaining
net exposure to foreign currency assets.
The table below shows the Sterling value of the difference between the contract and balance sheet date rates of exchange.
T otal net
Gains Losses gain/loss
Gains and losses on hedges £m £m £m
Unrecognised gains & losses in 2002 0.1 – 0.1
Gains and losses arising in previous years now recognised in June 2003 0.1 – 0.1
Gains and losses arising in previous years not recognised in June 2003 – – –
Unrecognised gains & losses in 2003 0.5 (0.2) 0.3
Of which gains and losses to be recognised in 2004 0.1 (0.2) (0.1)
After 2004 0.4 – 0.4
58
Private Label household 
and personal care products
Five-year financial summary
Restated
2003 2002 2001 2000 1999
£m £m £m £m £m
Profit and loss account
Turnover 505.0 484.0 497.6 496.8 496.8
Profit before tax (before goodwill, non-operating items
and operating exceptional items) 27.5 21.7 16.4 26.1 30.0
Profit after tax (before goodwill, non-operating items
and operating exceptional items) 19.6 16.1 15.8 19.6 22.5
Earnings
Earnings per share (before goodwill, operating exceptional
items and share of joint venture) 11.0p 8.9p 8.6p 10.8p 12.7p
Ordinary dividends 2.9p 2.1p 2.0p 4.6p 7.5p
Employees
Average number of employees 4,061 4,234 4,558 4,762 4,352
Record date for 2002/2003 final dividend 31 October 2003
Annual General Meeting 4 November 2003 at 12 noon
2002/2003 final dividend payment date 28 November 2003
Announcement of interim results February 2004
2003/2004 interim dividend payment May 2004
Financial calendar Group directory/advisors
Group Directory
McBride plc
McBride House
Penn Road
Beaconsfield
Buckinghamshire HP9 2FY
England
T elephone  01494 607050
Facsimile 01494 607055
McBride Holdings Limited
McBride House
Penn Road
Beaconsfield
Buckinghamshire HP9 2FY
England
T elephone 01494 607050
Facsimile 01494 607055
General Detergents S.p.A.
Via Bernini 17
20020 Solaro
Milan
Italy
T elephone 00 39 02 967 121
Facsimile 00 39 02 969 2217
McBride Aircare Limited
Middleton Way
Middleton
Manchester M24 4DP
England
T elephone 0161 653 9037
Facsimile 0161 655 2278
Grada B.V .
Modemweg 26
3800 AZ Amersfoort
The Netherlands
T elephone 00 31 33 45 43 100
Facsimile 00 31 33 45 43 103
Trimoteur Operations Europe B.V
Modemweg 26
3800 AZ Amersfoot
The Netherlands
T elephone 00 31 33 45 43 100
Facsimile 00 31 33 45 43 103
McBride Hungary Kft.
1034 Budapest
Timár utca 20
Hungary
T elephone 00 36 1 240 23 10
Facsimile 00 36 1 240 23 09
McBride s.r .o.
U1 Frantiska Divise 1012
10400 Praha 10
Czech Republic
T elephone 00 42 02 6771 1850
Facsimile 00 42 02 6771 1832
McBride CE Holdings Ltd
McBride House
Penn Road
Beaconsfield
Buckinghamshire HP9 2FY
England
T elephone 01494 607050
Facsimile 01494 607055
McBride Euro Finance Ltd
McBride House
Penn Road
Beaconsfield
Buckinghamshire HP9 2FY
England
T elephone 01494 607050
Facsimile 01494 607055
Problanc S.A.
Fontenoy
89520 Saint-Sanmour en Puysaye
France
T elephone 00 33 3 86 44 28 91
Facsimile 00 33 3 86 74 34 15
Productos Quimicos Arco Iris S.A.
Poligon Industrial l’Illa
Calle Ramon Esteve s/n
08650 Sallent
Barcelona
Spain
T elephone 00 34 9383 72800
Facsimile 00 34 9383 72218
Intersilesia McBride Polska Sp. Z o.o.
ul. Matejki 2a
47100 Strzelce Opolskie
Poland
T elephone 00 48 774 61 20 21
Facsimile 00 48 774 61 47 20
Robert McBride Ltd
Middleton Way
Middleton
Manchester M24 4DP
England
T elephone 0161 653 9037
Facsimile 0161 655 2278
Vitherm S.A.
Rue des Casernes
ZI de T avabbes
55400 Etain
France
T elephone 00 33 329 87 88 22
Facsimile 00 33 329 87 89 26
Yplon N.V ./S.A.
6 Rue Moulin Masure
7730 Estaimpuis
Belgium
T elephone 00 32 56 482111
Facsimile 00 32 56 482110
Yplon S.A.S
55 Rue Deguingard
F-92300 Levallois Perret
France
T elephone 00 33 1 47372844
Facsimile 00 33 1 47374376
Joint Venture
Aerosol Products Limited
Middleton Way
Middleton
Manchester M24 4DP
England 
T elephone 0161 653 9037
Facsimile 0161 655 2278
Auditors
KPMG Audit Plc
8 Salisbury Square
London EC4Y 8BB
Solicitors
Ashurst Morris Crisp
Broadwalk House
5 Appold Street
London EC2A 2HA
Merchant Bankers/Stockbrokers
Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein
PO Box 560
20 Fenchurch Street
London EC3M 3LB
Principal Bankers
Barclays Bank PLC
M1 Corridor Corporate Banking Centre
Eagle Point
1 Capability Green
Luton LU1 3US
Fortis Bank
Camomile Court
23 Camomile Street
London EC3A 7PP
KBC Bank N.V .
5th Floor
111 Old Broad Street
London EC2N 1BR
Registrars
Computershare Investor Services plc
Registrars Department
PO Box 82
The Pavilions
Bridgwater Road
Bristol BS99 7NH
60
Private Label household 
and personal care products
BUILDING
FOR GROWTH
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