Grocers' investment plan pays off
vrijdag, 12 maart 2010
Bradford-based supermarket Morrisons has seen its investment in 43 new stores pay off with record sales levels and bumper profits for the past year.
Pre-tax profits rose 21% in the 12 months to January 31, reaching £767 million from £636 million the year before.
The grocery chain said it had "another good year", as its turnover rose 6% to £15.4 billion, but said it expected challenging retail conditions to continue throughout 2010.
In the 12 months to January 31, like-for-like sales growth slowed to 6%, down from 8.2% previously, but the chain has continued to follow a growth strategy devised by former chief executive Mark Bolland before he joined Marks and Spencer.
It now has 425 branches across the UK, and plans to keep expanding and reach more customers after the grocer outperformed its larger rivals for the fourth consecutive year during the festive season.
Morrisons said it "delivered a promotional programme that enabled our customers to save money whilst eating good fresh food" by cutting the price of 30,000 products during the year. It reported its own label value range saw a 34% jump in sales, but fewer people bought premium organic and fairtrade items.
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