A MARINE electronics maker has bucked an industry slump to see sales rise in the early months of the coronavirus crisis.

Actisense, which manufactures electronics systems for boats, says its sales in the first quarter of 2020 were up six per cent on 2019 figures.

Last year’s figures already represented the strongest financial performance in the Poole business’s 23-year history.

Phil Whitehurst, chief executive of Actisense, said: “In truth, we had targeted a much higher rise in sales this year, but the industry – much like most others – has taken a knock.

“Having said that, we’re naturally buoyed by our Q1 sales results, as well as how things are progressing into Q2.

“While we may not achieve the upper target we’d originally set, as a company we are in a good position to leverage that small growth as we head into the second half of the year.

“We owe much of our success to our committed and dedicated distribution partners around the globe. It’s through their sense of optimism and hard work that our customers have been able to source the products that they have needed from us, which in turn has kept our production teams busy in replenishing that stock.

“Keeping our customers safe by having the products they’ve needed from us has been a top priority during this crisis.”

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The business reported particularly strong sales of its NGW-1 NMEA 0183 to NMEA 2000 converter – which links old and new data networks on a boat – as well as regular repeat orders for its A2K range of NMEA 2000 cables and connectors.

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At the height of the panademic, Actisense ran a campaign called #NoStormLastsForever, featuring positive messages that people could download and share on social media.

It told customers that “We will have you back on the water soon” and contained inspirational quotations from the likes of Mother Theresa, Helen Keller and Winston Churchill.

The business is based at Harwell Road on Poole’s Nuffield Industrial Estate and employs 28 people.