Ocado revenue hit by adverse weather conditions

Online grocer Ocado has reported its sales were “impacted by adverse weather conditions” ensuing from the ‘Beast from the East’ early this month, and that profits have also taken a hit.

Growth was 11.7% to £363.4 million, with tens of thousands of orders over the quarter being affected by snow. This resulted in a profit hit of £1.5m where the firm had to cancel orders due to the icy weather.

Ocado also saw its average order size fall by 0.4 per cent or 40p to £110.45.

CEO Tim Steiner said: “We are pleased to report another quarter of strong underlying sales growth in our retail business in line with our guidance for the year.  

“The reported rate of retail revenue growth over the quarter was broadly the same as in Q4 2017 as we operated at maximum capacity for most of the quarter and were impacted by the winter storms that caused widespread disruption during the final week.

“Taking advantage of the opportunities ahead of us is both challenging and exhilarating. The business is firmly looking forward.”