The six months to May saw Compass more than double sales to £2m and improve pre-tax profits by 70% to £91,481, largely on account of a deal with House of Fraser. Under the terms of this contract the company is supplying a range of software products to the retail chain and is also acting as a contractor - integrating additional design and merchandising applications from other vendors. The second contract, awarded by Dutch department store chain Vroom & Dreesman, looks even more significant, as it represents the company's largest overseas order to date. Coming in the third quarter it also bolsters a period finance director Simon Duckworth describes as being 'generally very quiet'. Although he admits that retailers are tightening the purse strings as fears of a recession mount, Duckworth believes that full year profit forecasts of £500,000 are 'certainly achievable'. This confidence stems from Compass's ability to 'justify the benefits of [its] system to prospective clients'. In addition, house broker Williams de Broe is also expecting £4.2m of sales by year-end. The group also expects to benefit from the additional client base afforded by recently acquired design software supplier Guided Image. GI, which currently lists Next, Mothercare and Ted Baker among its customers, reported a £117,527 profit on £674,316 of turnover last year.