Sales in calendar year 2023 slipped by 2.4% to $114.7m (£87.4m), while adjusted EBITDA was down 14.6% at $11.5m.

The bottom line loss after deductions – including $7.3m in depreciation and amortisation and $1.3m in exceptional items – was $1.08m compared to a profit of just over $1.09m the prior year.

North America, already by far Moo’s largest market, nudged up to 82% of sales (2022: 81%).

CEO Richard Moross said the business had consolidated after two years of rapid growth, post-pandemic.

“Despite strong progress in delivery, some post-pandemic headwinds persisted. During the year we identified a softness in activity within certain customer cohorts, which had begun to impact our growth,” he explained.

Moross said new customer acquisition had reduced during the pandemic as the business pivoted to focus on servicing existing customers.

Active customers slipped from 521,000 in 2022 to 506,000 last year.

“This effect was masked by the wave of returning customers in 2022, as the world went back to work,” he noted.

“We began to address this in September 2023, increasing marketing spend to drive up new customer acquisition in North America, our largest and most valuable market.

He said the strategy had proved successful, with new customers in the US and Canada returning to growth late last year.

Overheads reduced to 22.4% of sales from 27.4%, “demonstrating our continued focus on cost control and the enduring benefit of the restructuring measures implemented during the pandemic”.

Moo completed the move to its new manufacturing facility in East Providence, Rhode Island, during Q1 2023.

This has more than tripled capacity, improved efficiencies, and readied the business for the expansion of its branded merchandise offering.

Moo also invested nearly $6m in its new technology platform, which will launch on 9 September, along with some new products.

It has already added its new custom designed Twist retractable ballpoint pen to its offering in the US.

“There are several more products in the pipe for Q3/4, all of which are launching exclusively in the US market,” Moross told Printweek.

“The US is more than 80% of our business today, so we are prioritising that market for now with regards to new products.”

He said other markets would follow, although dates were not yet defined.

Moross said that while Moo still had headwinds to navigate, the business was well-positioned, with an acceleration of growth anticipated next year “fuelled by rapid product expansion and supported by new technology”.

In his commentary CFO Patrick Stirling-Howe said the firm’s double-digit million dollar cash flows from operations put it in a “robust position”.

It has extended the maturity of its Future Fund convertible loan by to September 2025, and also refinanced its term debt and revolving credit facility with an increased value of $20m.

This has allowed the group to continue to invest in its technology replatforming and branded merchandise strategy, he noted.

“The also provide us with working capital flexibility and additional cash flow headroom should the need arise.”

The firm’s HQ is in London with its UK manufacturing facility in Dagenham.

It employed 437 people at the year-end.

Moo, which refreshed its own branding at the beginning of this year, also celebrates 18 years in business this month.