Riva Group Plc, the Westhoughton, Bolton-based supplier of point-of-sale systems, has returned to profitability after acquiring the loss-making electronic cash register company Hugin Sweda Group in October 1989. Product design, development, manufacturing and distribution have been centred in new premises near Bolton, Lancashire, to enable better control and response to market requirements, says chairman Tom Milne. The year has been largely spent integrating Hugin Sweda into Riva, and rationalising the company back to health. Hugin Sweda products have been upgraded to incorporate Riva technology and are being installed across Europe under the name Riva Hugin Sweda. Now that the company has restored profitability, Milne says he looks forward to making progress in increasing both sales and profits. Progress, however, will depend on recovery in the hard-hit UK retailing sector and the speed of implementation across the continent.
