Devonshire Industries — owner of the Bermuda Paint Company — saw profits slump by more than half in the year ending March 31.In a letter to shareholders, the Bermuda Stock Exchange-listed company said net income fell to $49,000, compared to $133,000 in the previous year.“Reduced customer spending and the severe decline in construction industry activity contributed to a nine percent reduction in revenue, which we consider to be a good outcome bearing in mind the difficult economic environment,” the company reported. “Our gross margin decreased from 39.7 percent to 37.5 percent reflecting pricing constraints.”Devonshire Industries said it had been “another challenging year for the company and the Bermuda economy in general”. However, it added that the company had been able to achieve a modest profit as a result of careful cost management.Operating costs fell by $115,000 (9.7 percent) as compared with the previous year.“Despite the challenging environment, revenue for the current year to date is marginally ahead of the prior period,” the company added.Devonshire said it remained in a strong financial position with net assets of $2.6 million, including cash and deposits of $575,000, as of the end of March this year.Dividends totalling $108,000 were paid to shareholders.“As previously advised, we are investigating the economics of a new building to better showcase our new colour system and branding,” Devonshire added. “We believe it is imperative that the physical plant be in place to take full advantage of our new initiatives and to maximise shareholder value. Progress in this area has been slower than we would like but we are keen to move forward, such that we may have physical plant reflective of our impressive product range.“The projected construction and related cost of the new building is estimated to be approximately $2 million.“The company is to explore all methods of financing but we are keen to offer existing shareholders the opportunity to further invest in the growth of the company. Support from our shareholders in this important initiative would help bring our exciting vision to fruition and we believe add long-term shareholder value. We expect to be in contact with shareholders regarding this matter in due course.”Useful website: www.bermudapaint.bm