Camile Thai profits double despite fall in group revenues

Camile Thai Group doubled its pre-tax profits in 2025 despite a fall in revenue, with newly reported accounts showing a network of 43 franchised stores alongside six company-owned kitchens. The results also include a €122,000 exceptional cost linked to historical payroll tax liabilities following the Karshan judgement.

Profit growth outpaces revenue performance

The consolidated accounts for Camile Thai Group Holdings, reported by RTÉ on 9 October, show pre-tax profits of €552,369 for the year ended December 2025. That compares with €275,484 in 2024.

Revenue moved in the opposite direction, falling by 3.5% from €12.74 million to €12.28 million. The combination of higher profits and lower revenue makes the composition of the result particularly important when assessing the group’s performance.

The main contributor to the profit increase was €1.3 million in “other operating income”, compared with €1,099 under that heading in 2024. The rise in headline profit should therefore not be read as evidence of increased sales across the restaurant network.

After a corporation tax charge of €84,475, the group recorded a post-tax profit of €467,894. Accumulated profits stood at €1.62 million at the end of December 2025.

These are group-level financial results, rather than a statement of the earnings achieved by individual Camile Thai franchisees. That distinction matters for prospective operators assessing the brand: the parent group’s financial performance and the trading economics of a particular outlet are different measures.

Accounts show a franchise-led network

The group’s principal activities during the year included producing food and packaging for Camile Thai outlets, distribution and operating its six company-owned Camile Thai Kitchens stores. A further 43 stores were franchised at the year end.

That operating mix places franchised outlets at the centre of the network, while the group also carries out supply and distribution functions and runs restaurants directly.

For Ireland’s franchise community, the accounts offer a view of the business behind the brand, rather than simply a count of restaurant openings. They show how the group combines its own kitchens with a substantially larger franchised estate.

The revenue figure should be considered in that context. It covers the group’s reported activities and should not be presented as total consumer spending across all Camile Thai outlets or as a measure of franchisee turnover.

The directors identified increased competition and the economic climate as principal risks and uncertainties facing the business. Those concerns sit alongside the improved profit result, underlining the importance of looking beyond a single headline number.

Payroll settlement follows Karshan judgement

The accounts include an exceptional cost of €122,000 arising from the Supreme Court’s Karshan ruling.

According to the directors, this related to a Revenue settlement covering historical payroll tax liabilities for 2024 and 2025. They said the liabilities were identified following Revenue guidance associated with the judgement, with previous contractor drivers now designated as employees.

The Supreme Court ruled on 20 October 2023 in Revenue Commissioners v Karshan (Midlands) Ltd, trading as Domino’s Pizza, that the delivery drivers concerned were employees under contracts of service rather than self-employed independent contractors.

Camile Thai’s disclosure gives the issue a specific financial dimension within a restaurant franchise group. It also separates the payroll settlement from ordinary trading costs by identifying it as an exceptional item.

For operators using delivery drivers, the practical question is whether their working arrangements and payroll treatment have been properly reviewed. The disclosure is a reason to seek advice on those arrangements, not to assume that every delivery operation has identical circumstances.

Cash generation and investment increase the picture

Net cash generated from operating activities reached €1 million in 2025, up from €701,824 in 2024. The group also spent €888,036 acquiring tangible assets as part of its continuing expansion.

Reported profits took account of €724,297 in non-cash depreciation costs. Meanwhile, employee numbers fell from 158 to 113, and staff costs declined from €4.44 million to €4.05 million.

Taken together, the figures show stronger reported profitability and operating cash generation, alongside lower revenue and employment costs.

Practical takeaway: Prospective franchisees should assess outlet-level trading information separately from group accounts, while existing operators should review delivery-driver employment and payroll arrangements with their advisers.