But profitability and sales have since declined, he said.
The quarry prospered for a while, but then profitability declined, and in 1900, a large section of the underground workings collapsed.
Good dividends were paid between 1876 and 1889, but then profitability declined.
By 1923, the profitability of the pottery had declined significantly further, with the Directors being forced to take large cuts in their salaries.
There is general, though not unanimous, agreement that profitability in British industry has declined since the early 1950s.
The profitability of crude oil production declined because world oil prices were down.
Toward the end of the century, as ranching's profitability declined, many communities turned increasingly to agriculture.
As transportation technology allowed easier travel, the number and profitability of local businesses declined, and the town became a bedroom community.
Lord Browne acknowledged that the company's profitability would decline if the price of oil came down.
But at Amoco and elsewhere, the profitability of chemicals declined.