The B&M group has recorded another period of bumper growth, prompting it to pay a special £200m dividend to shareholders and a generous bonus to staff.
Over the 13 weeks to 26 December, the company’s total revenue jumped 22.5% to £1.4bn. The performance was driven by its core B&M chain in the UK which saw total revenue climb 26.6% to £1.2bn and like-for-likes surge up 21.1%.
Net of closures, 16 new B&M stores were opened during the period taking the total to 673. The retailer said it plans to open 18 more stores during the fourth quarter, bringing the total to 45 gross for the full year, offset by 10 closures.
Meanwhile, the group’s 298-strong convenience store chain Heron Foods saw total revenues increase 7.6% to £102.9m with “solid” like-for-like sales.
The only disappointment was its Babou unit in France which saw revenues edge down 1.5% to £83.7m due to disruption caused by the lockdown restrictions in the country.
The special dividend of 20p a share will be paid on 29 January and follows an earlier special payout of £250m announced in September. With Chief Executive Simon Arora and his family the biggest shareholders in the business, they will receive around £30m.
However, B&M is also sharing its success with staff and will pay 30,000 store and distribution workers an extra week’s wages “in recognition of their considerable efforts”.
B&M’s sales have boomed during the pandemic as its stores remained open as a seller of essential goods during lockdowns. It has also benefited from having shops in retail parks away from town centres, which have been busier than high streets and shopping centres.
The group said today that its annual adjusted EBITDA would be between £540m and £570m after it decided to pay £80m of business rates. It had previously said earnings would be £600m-£650m excluding any voluntary payment of business rates.
Arora commented: “Notwithstanding our status as an essential retailer, with lockdown restrictions in the UK having tightened there remain uncertainties ahead. With our combination of exceptional value and convenient out of town locations, we are confident that our business model will prove highly relevant to the needs of customers in 2021.”
