B&M posts uplift in sales and profit as Sir Terry Leahy prepares to step down as chairman
B&M European has announced a 21.7% uplift in group revenue to £1.346 billion as it reported that Sir Terry Leahy is to step down as chairman.
In the six months to 23 September, B&M UK like-for-like revenues increased by 7.5%, including growth of 7.7% in the retailer’s second quarter.
Meanwhile, group adjusted EBITDA climbed by 19.8% to £116.1 million while pre-tax profit rose by 17.8% to £86.8 million.
Simon Arora, B&M chief executive, said: “B&M continues to prosper in a challenging retail environment and our teams remain wholly focused on helping our customers spend less during uncertain times. Our UK business continues to go from strength to strength, with new and like-for-like stores performing exceptionally well and the acquisition of Heron has added another leg of growth to the group. We have also taken steps to enable us to push on with expanding our Jawoll business.”
B&M has also announced the appointment of Peter Bamford as non-executive chairman with effect from 1 March 2018. He will succeed Sir Terry Leahy who will retire from the board after five years in the role. Bamford will initially be appointed as a non-executive director of one of the company’s subsidiaries from 1 January 2018.
Currently chairman of Superdry owner SuperGroup, Bamford is also deputy chairman and senior independent director of Spire Healthcare. His previous roles include chairman of Six Degrees Holdings and non-executive director of Rentokil Initial. In addition, he was a director of Vodafone from 1998 to 2006, where he held senior executive roles including chief marketing officer, chief executive of Northern Europe, Middle East and Africa and chief executive of Vodafone UK. Prior to that, he held senior positions with WH Smith, Tesco and Kingfisher.
Sir Terry Leahy said: “I’m delighted that Peter, with his strong track record and relevant experience, including in the retailing sector, is to be the next chairman of B&M. It has been a great privilege to have been part of one of the most exciting emerging retail growth stories of the past decade in an industry undergoing profound structural changeThe business is very well-positioned for continued growth and success in the future.”
