Latest Results

JOINT CHAIRMAN AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE’S REPORT

During 2024 the Company has continued to focus on retail sales of its wellness portfolio. As the healthcare landscape has evolved, the growth potential for at-home and in-store testing to meet a major need within the UK market has become apparent. Health testing, and the choice it gives end-users to select the type of test they want and when to take it, enables customers to take more control of their own health management. When this is coupled with guidance, additional services, and recommendations, then wellness testing can become an integral part of a healthcare relationship that could span years.

MHC has focused heavily in recent years on working with Boots - the UK’s health, wellness and beauty retailer- to unlock these opportunities, recognizing early on that alignment with the UK’s biggest healthcare high street name would not only support the delivery of shareholder value, but could potentially provide strategic partnership opportunities in the longer term to enable MHC to play a significant role in the evolution of accessible healthcare during this exciting period of change in consumer behaviour and choice. From COVID PCR testing in May 2021, through to the launch of a portfolio of wellness tests in May 2023, and the preparation for the provision of phlebotomy testing services during 2025, MHC has worked closely with Boots to execute a testing strategy that is expected to form a fundamental role in the evolution of retail healthcare testing services.

As previously reported sales of COVID Lateral Flow Tests (“LFTs”) were significantly reduced during 2024 due to high stock levels in trade at the start of the year which meant the initial orders in preparation of the 24/25 season were not received until July. Furthermore, since the spike in demand seen last summer, end-user sales of COVID LFTs have continued to reduce from the levels seen in prior years and this trend is now expected to continue reflecting a change in decision-making post-vaccine and an associated shift in testing habits as the virus is assumed to be of less concern to individuals.

However, following the successful launch of the wellness portfolio in 2023 growth has been consistent, and unit sales of the range overall have almost doubled compared to the prior year. Lateral flow tests provide a price-accessible entry-level proposition, whilst the laboratory test range offers a more in-depth wellness assessment, and together this varied portfolio is comprehensive and underpins the broader testing category at point of sale. It is expected that sales will continue to grow as integration into wider healthcare services is maximized by the potential of the MHC digital platform.

With home testing still in its early stages and the growth potential yet to be realized, we have worked closely with Boots to distribute a pipeline of tests that are innovative, and benefit the end-user, to form part of a wider testing and services portfolio. During the year under review, we identified two such tests; the first was a rapid HIV test from Newfoundland Diagnostics that requires a small blood sample taken by a novel device with an inbuilt lancet and capillary action. This simple-to-use and affordable test has performed very well at retail and has been designed to facilitate an affordable testing process for users with the aim of encouraging regular testing as part of a proactive HIV management programme. We also signed a contract with Vital Signs Solutions Limited to distribute their groundbreaking connected Heart Health self-test (“PocDoc”), which listed on www.boots.com in April 2025. PocDoc is an example of where self-testing can directly support the work and goals of the NHS, by offering a simple to use device that mirrors NHS protocols to include common heart biomarkers whilst providing a Q-Risk heart score and a heart age indication. PocDoc has been developed alongside NHS practitioners and is connected to the NHS app, and provides a cost-effective, simple to use solution to meet the needs of a major UK health issue.

Portfolio expansion

Presently MHC branded products sit alongside Boots own brand products in store. However, as the category has grown, we have noted that the addition of retailer private label brands, such as Boots Iron and Vitamin D LFTs, can drive growth of the category. In addition, as previously announced on 14 January 2025, our phlebotomy test kits have been registered in the UK and EU in preparation for their launch into the UK market during the current year.  The provision of the phlebotomy kit and associated services will be a strong addition to the range and will offer more customer choice in the wellness testing process. Partnering with organisations that have extensive operational footprints, accessibility and visibility will help raise awareness and will also provide environments where broader complimentary healthcare services can be provided.

Digital development

We have continued to invest in the MHC digital platform, building a scalable platform with a robust recommendation engine that can underpin the variety of test types and services in our portfolio and enable omnichannel delivery. The platform has been built for retail customers from inception and is highly customer-centric to ensure a seamless experience for users. We have continued to build upon its capabilities to ensure that the development of new test types, pathways and recommendations can be delivered efficiently, which will in turn accelerate route to market. We have undertaken works in 2024 under tight cost control and have evolved our operational infrastructure so that our ongoing digital capability is strong.

Data security

During the period we also built upon our Cyber Essentials Plus certification introducing robust security and testing practices and systems to achieve ISO 27001:2013 accreditation in June 2024. This ensures that our platform has the necessary security testing practices and control of accessibility and traceability to meet the challenging, yet critical, GDPR requirements associated with processing customer health data under the In-Vitro Diagnostic Regulations. The safeguarding of customers' data has become increasingly important as a number of DNA testing giants have come under public scrutiny by the media. Consequently, GDPR remains a top priority for us, and we have continued to strengthen our practices for managing the collection, retention, and disposal of Special Categories of data. Further investment has been made in the current year to transition to the new ISO 27001:2022 standard and confirmation of the Company’s successful accreditation was received in April 2025.

Regulatory compliance

In June 2024 we underwent an audit of our compliance practices and paperless Quality Management System, and in September we were formally certified as meeting the ISO 13485 standard, which is specific to the medical device industry. Our first ISO 13485 surveillance audit in May 2025 was successful with zero non-conformances. Achieving this certification, and being audited positively, reflects our strong focus on compliance and demonstrates to our customers and partners that our product development and delivery processes are both consistent and robust. In parallel, we’ve maintained a service delivery that upholds the safeguarding and governance standards required under our Healthcare Inspectorate Wales (HIW) certification. This allows us to provide doctor-verified testing and reinforces our commitment to safety and adherence to best practices.

Outlook

Although sales of wellness tests in the current year to date have increased by approximately 62% over the comparable period in the prior year, demand for COVID LFTs by end users has continued to reduce. Despite tight cost controls the loss for H1 of the current year is therefore expected to be broadly comparable to the prior year.  However, we will continue to drive towards long-term growth in consumer wellness testing.

As an organisation with deep retail product knowledge, the board recognizes the importance of partnerships with trusted retail brands, with the key to long-term profitable growth embedded in the end-to-end customer journey, which firmly places testing as part of a wider service and product offering and builds a longer-term relationship with the end customer. We are confident that our ongoing relationship with Boots will continue, and we expect our digital platform will be used to underpin communications with customers regarding testing services. Our digital platform is able to integrate a wide portfolio of products and is a critical enabler in the delivery of higher margin services in the rest of the consumer wellness value chain, and we will continue to explore potential opportunities and strategic partnerships with UK retailers and digital retail outlets.