Ken Turner arrives at his Preston headquarters at 6.30am every morning – perhaps a little later on a Saturday and Sunday. By 10am, each of his UK-wide network of depots has been issued with detailed information about their performance and left in little doubt about what’s expected of them. “This is a profits business,” says Turner. “Customer service is everything.”

For the chief executive of AIM listed gaming machine operator and pub supplies business Sceptre Leisure (LON:SCEL) , it is also about leading by example. Every year for the past 12 years his team has delivered growth in revenues and profits and this year was no different: sales up 9% to £42.8m and pre-tax profits up 37% to £1.9m. Turner puts the performance down to a string of factors, not least of which are the huge profits that can be made by increasingly buoyant pub groups from gaming machines on their premises. Likewise, passion, tight cost control and a close eye on the competition have been essential – as has a bullish attitude to buying and selling other businesses.

Sceptre was admitted to AIM in September 2008 following a reverse takeover involving Turner’s Orb Holdings with listed outfit GamingKing. The combined business brought together Sceptre, Lotteryking, Kelly’s Eye and Creative Lotteries. In June last year that portfolio was boosted by the addition of Australian 8 Ball on the south coast of England. It also saw the sale of a portfolio of fixed odds betting terminal (FOBT) machines ahead of expected tough new rules governing that sector. For Turner, the opportunities presented by a fragmented market mean that further acquisitions are a major focus – and some of them could be bigger than others…

Ken, you started this business 12 years ago and every year since then revenues and profits have increased. How have you done that?

We have a passion for the business. Every year has seen an increase in sales and profit margins. This year we have seen our revenue up over 9%, profit before tax up 37%, earnings per share up 15%, we have worked on gross margins and they are up nearly three points. You have got to keep working at a business, every business has its own dynamics but it is all about people at the end of the day – having…

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