Rural supplies company CRT said growing market share was part of the reason for a massive 39% growth in revenue for the last financial year.
Revenue for the South Island co-operative grew by $226 million in the year to March 31 to reach $802 million, with all divisions and company activities expanding their business.
Chairman Don McFarlane said the business had grown through acquisitions such as Winton Stock Feeds in Southland, and expansion, as with rural fuel in the North Island, but it had also generated new business.
The annual operating surplus before rebates, bonus rebates, rewards and tax was $37 million, which was achieved on total share capital of $35.6 million.
The bottom-line surplus was $12 million - a 28% increase on a year earlier - of which $9 million would be distributed to its 24,000 shareholders through $3.6 million in cash and $5.4 million in additional CRT shares.
Mr McFarlane said with monthly rebates on CRT transactions, a bonus rebate and rewards scheme, nearly $34 million had been returned to shareholders over the year.
In the past four years, CRT has doubled its revenue and the monthly rebates paid to shareholders, increased four times its profit from operating activities and increased the number of shareholders by 5000.
Gross profit rose from $67 million in 2008 to $87 million in the year under review, with the profit after distribution to members and before tax similar to last year at $3 million.
The company has been growing, with total assets increasing from $114 million to $137 million and current liabilities rising from $78 million to $95 million.
This saw members' interest in the company rise from $35 million to $43 million.
Looking ahead, Mr McFarlane said he would like the company's finance arm to be "more aggressive".
By default, it had been funding deferred payment transactions for fertiliser and farm inputs, but this would be extended to credit line facilities for purchases.
With pressure expected to come on the sector in the coming year, Mr McFarlane said he wanted to facilitate trade for shareholders by offering extra services.
CRT chief executive Brent Esler said the coming year would be challenging for both sales and revenue, but being geographically diverse and offering a broad range of services - from dairying to horticulture - would assist.
The new financial year had started strongly, with revenue in the first quarter ahead of last year, but Mr Esler expected that to level off.
