McColl’s like-for-like sales down 1.8% in third quarter
Newsagent and convenience chain McColl’s saw its like-for-like sales decline by 1.8% in its third quarter to mark a slight improvement for the business.
In the 13 weeks to 28 August total revenue rose by the same percentage.
Jonathan Miller, McColl’s chief executive, said: “Our total sales this quarter were up year-on-year by 1.8%, fuelled by our investment programme. Like-for-like sales were down by 1.8%, marking a slight improvement on the year to date trend.
“As a business we remain focused on the key elements of our clear strategy: to increase market share, grow our convenience product range and deliver great customer service, which we are confident will cement our position as a leading neighbourhood retailer.”
McColl’s said the results mean that like-for-like sales in the year to date are down 2%. Like-for-like sales in recently acquired and converted stores have risen by 1% while sales in premium convenience and food and wine stores have fallen by 1.2%.
Meanwhile, like-for-like sales in its newsagents and standard convenience stores have dropped by 3.7% as a result of continued pressure on traditional categories.
McColl’s said it is making good progress with its convenience store expansion and continuing to capture market share. The company said it is on track to achieve its target of 1,000 convenience stores by the end of December 2016.
Miller added: “2016 continues to be a year of significant progress in delivering our convenience strategy. This was particularly demonstrated by our transformational acquisition of 298 convenience stores from the Co-op announced on 13 July 2016. We are making good progress with the approvals and our preparations ahead of the transition of these stores during 2017.”
