THE COMPANY behind Yorkshire’s famous Bettys tearooms and the county’s best selling tea brand has seen turnover reach almost £190 million amid “increasingly competitive” market conditions.

Announcing its annual results for the year ending October 31, 2017, Bettys and Taylors of Harrogate saw year on year turnover grow from £173.6 million to £189.7 million.

The Harrogate-headquartered family business, which has Bettys tea rooms in St Helen’s Square and Stonegate in York, and also owns Yorkshire Tea, reported pre-tax profits of £16 million, up from £9.3 million, while operating profits jumped from £9.8 million to £15 million.

As well as its six tea rooms across Yorkshire, which welcomed more than two million visitors during the year, the business runs Bettys Craft Bakery and Bettys Cookery School as well as its online retail outlet bettys.co.uk.

It holds a Royal Warrant from HRH The Prince of Wales for Taylors of Harrogate teas and coffees.

The firm said: “The business operates in a highly competitive market with the potential for consumers to move to other brands/own label. Customer relationships are therefore critical.”

Bettys and Taylors said it was committed to ethical buying and last year was given a Queen’s Award for sustainable development.

It added: “The group is recognised for the quality of its products and its exceptional customer service.

“This is achieved through a commitment to buying the best ingredients, innovative product development and rigorous staff training, with a particular focus on service and craft.”

During the year, the firm gave £56,530 to Yorkshire based charities

An investment of £3.9 million was also made in plant, machinery and IT systems during the year.

Next year the firm will celebrate its centenary.