Holland & Barrett has bucked the current downbeat trend in the retail sector by announcing robust figures from the Christmas trading period.
Total sales at the health & wellness retailer rose 4.8% year-on-year in the quarter ending 31 December, with a 3.3% increase on a like-for-like basis. E-commerce sales jumped 22%, driven by its renewed focus on this part of its business
Holland & Barrett stated that its stores had also performed well with all markets experiencing like-for-like sales increases and “significant” growth in the clean beauty and vitamins categories.
The group highlighted that its “transformation plan” to extend the range of health and wellness products and services available to customers and grow its digital reach had showed encouraging early progress. E-commerce and personalised subscription sales growth were said to have been particularly strong, driven by promotions and range extensions.
Following reports at the end of last year suggesting the business had funding issues, Holland & Barrett’s statement today stressed that it had achieved strong cash generation in the quarter via cost and capital investment control, with £26m of cash on hand at year end.
Tony Buffin, Holland & Barrett Chief Executive Officer, said: “I am pleased with the progress our support centre, distribution and store teams have made in putting customers back at the heart of our business. Our customers are increasingly telling us they want to live more healthy lifestyles, to look better and to do so without compromising on the ethically and sustainably sourced products and services they buy.
“H&B is ideally placed to meet these demands in growing markets and although we are still only in the early stages of transforming the business I would like to thank all of our teams for their hard work in the run up to Christmas.”
Holland & Barrett currently operates more than 1,300 stores worldwide, including over 800 in the UK and Ireland.
