Today’s news in brief
Former BHS owner Dominic Chappell has been ordered to pay at least £50m by a High Court judge for the losses incurred by the high street chain before its collapse. Chappell, who bought BHS for £1 from Philip Green, faces charges from liquidators for wrongful trading, misfeasance, and breach of fiduciary duty. Justice Leech highlighted that Chappell lacked a viable plan to secure working capital when he acquired BHS and took opportunities to exploit the company. The judgement includes £21.5m for wrongful trading and £17.5m for breach of fiduciary duty, with additional costs and interest.
Revolution Beauty has reported a return to profitability for the fiscal year ending 29 February 2024, following two challenging years. The company’s profit before tax reached £11.4m, a significant turnaround from a loss of £33.9m the previous year. Revenues increased by 2% to £191.3m, although online sales declined as shoppers returned to physical stores. The UK market saw a 6.7% drop in sales, while the US market experienced a 14.8% decline. The company’s adjusted EBITDA improved to £12.6m from a loss of £7.5m.
Morrisons reported a 3.7% increase in total sales, excluding fuel, to £3.8bn in the second quarter, with like-for-like sales up by 4.1%. The supermarket chain also reduced its debt by 35% to £4bn following the sale of its petrol filling station business. This reduction aligns with Morrisons’ strategic pillars: commercial excellence, operations optimization, and new value creation. The company completed its McColl’s conversion program, expanding to over 1,600 Morrisons Daily convenience stores and targeting 2,000 by 2025.
ProCook reported a slight revenue increase to £62.6m for the fiscal year ending 31 March 2024. The company achieved an underlying profit before tax of £1 million, driven by improved gross margins and strong cost control despite inflationary pressures. Although like-for-like revenue fell by 2%, retail revenue grew by 2.8%. E-commerce sales declined by 8.7% due to disruptions from a new website platform. ProCook acquired 687,000 new customers, with a 5.6% rise in active customers to over one million. The company plans modest revenue growth for FY25, bolstered by a recovery in e-commerce and the opening of ten new stores.
Sharps Bedrooms has acquired Clever Closet, a company specialising in under stairs storage solutions, for an undisclosed sum. This acquisition follows Sharps’ purchase of Fittingly in 2023 and comes as Sharps reported a 6% increase in turnover to £135m for the year ending September 2023. Despite inflationary challenges, the company maintained resilient margins with EBITDA at £25.9m. The shift from physical storefronts to a digitally-led shopping experience has supported this performance.
AO World reported adjusted profits before tax of £34.3m for the year ending 31 March 2024, a year-on-year increase of £22.3m. This improvement reflects the company’s strategic shift towards profitability and cash generation, despite expected revenue stabilisation after the removal of non-core channels. AO maintains a 15% market share in major domestic appliances and has seen significant customer engagement, with 54% of its business from repeat customers. The company extended its £80m revolving credit facility to April 2027 and aims for double-digit revenue growth and adjusted PBT between £36m and £41m in FY25.
