The production house behind Dancing with the Stars has booked a second-successive loss

Shinawil also produces TV programmes such as Dragons’ Den and Say Yes to the Dress.

By Killian Woods Reporter, Fora

THE IRISH PRODUCTION house behind TV shows such as Dancing with the Stars and Dragons’ Den has registered a loss for the second-successive year.

Dublin-based Shinawil was set up in 1999 by college friends Larry Bass and Simon Gibney and has since expanded to open a Northern Irish operation.

Since it launched, the firm has received commissions to produce programming for RTÉ, BBC, TG4, TV3 and the now disbanded station UTV Ireland.

Accounts published for the firm show that the Shinawil made a loss of €155,000 last year, although the company still has accumulated profits of almost €180,000.

The loss for last year is slightly less than the figure registered for the year ending 31 December 2015, when the firm made a loss of €253,000. Despite the losses, cash at bank increased by €333,000 to break the €631,000 mark.

The company’s debtors, people who owe money to Shinawil, stood at €3.1 million at the end of the year. Its creditors, people who it owes money to within one year, stood at €3.6 million.

Speaking to Fora last year, Bass said the company has revenues of between €7 million and €8 million a year and it was expecting a “significantly better” year in 2017.

Bass added that the firm has also investigated the feasibility of opening an outpost in London.

During 2016, the headcount at the firm also increased from an average of 18 to 23, and wages paid out also increased from €932,000 to €1.3 million.

The Dragons pictured at the launch of RTE's Dragon's Den. The new series will air this Sunday, 17th April from 9:30pm on RTE One. Dragons' Den investors
Source: Ruth Medjber

Some notable titles the company has produced include the Voice of Ireland and Home of the Year on RTÉ and TV3′s Celebrity MasterChef.

Three years after it opened its Belfast office, Shinawil received its first BBC Northern Ireland commission to produce Undercover NI.

It has also launched the Irish version of the popular international series Say Yes to the Dress this year on RTÉ.

During the summer, the firm signed a deal with Independent News and Media to co-launch a new joint venture called Offscript.

The new digital content company will involve the TV production firm taking a big role in visual content for INM’s portfolio of newspapers.

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