Top 30 UK Retailers 2023-2024
Welcome to Retail Sector’s Top 30 UK retailers list for 2023-2024. Some highlights from the data collated via each firms latest public set of financial results are as follows:
Introductory Analysis
- Amazon’s Dominance: Amazon’s FY revenue of £451.4 billion makes it not only the largest retailer by revenue but also highlights its significant 12% year-on-year growth. This underscores Amazon’s continued dominance in the UK retail sector, despite being a non-UK-based company.
- Tesco’s Workforce: Tesco stands out as the largest employer in the UK retail sector with over 326,000 employees across 2,048 locations. This emphasizes its strong presence and operational scale in the country.
- Boots’ Financial Turnaround: Boots has made a remarkable recovery, with its profit before tax surging from £4 million to £60 million. This represents the largest percentage increase among the top retailers, signaling effective strategies in place to improve profitability.
- Frasers Group’s Growth: The Frasers Group, led by Mike Ashley, has seen a 96% increase in pre-tax profits to £661 million. This growth is attributed to its aggressive acquisition strategy, which seems to be paying off, particularly for its flagship brand Sports Direct, which also saw revenue growth.
- Homebase’s Struggles: Homebase, at the bottom of the top 30 list, experienced significant challenges with revenues of £701 million and pre-tax losses of £85.2 million, a stark contrast to its profit of £55.6 million the previous year. This highlights ongoing difficulties in the DIY retail sector.
- M&S’s Resilience: Marks & Spencer reported a 9.3% year-on-year increase in revenue, indicating strong performance in a competitive market, supported by its 72,000 employees across 1,064 UK stores.
- International Influence: The inclusion of international brands like Amazon, Apple, and H&M in the list reflects their significant market presence in the UK, despite not being based there. This suggests that global players continue to shape the UK retail landscape significantly.
- Economic Challenges: Some retailers, like Morrisons and Asos, are struggling with declining profits and revenues, which might be attributed to broader economic challenges or shifts in consumer behavior post-pandemic.
- Diverse Retail Landscape: The list shows a wide range of retailers, from discount chains like Aldi and Lidl to luxury brands like House of Fraser, reflecting the diverse nature of the UK retail market.
- Future Developments: The mention of Waitrose planning to open 100 convenience stores as part of a £1 billion investment highlights ongoing expansion and competition in the convenience store segment.
The Rankings
Please note, you can sort / re-order the table by each metric in the colum headers.
| Retailer | FY Revenues (£bn) | YoY % Change | PBT (£bn) | YoY % Change | Number of employees | Number of UK stores |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon | 451.40 | 12.0 | 28.9 | 202.54 | 75,000 | 19 |
| Apple | 301.1 | -2.8 | 8.8 | -4.30 | 6,459 | 40 |
| Tesco | 61.5 | 7.4 | 2.3 | 159.50 | 326,000 | 2048 |
| Sainsbury's | 30.96 | 3.4 | 0.701 | 1.60 | 111,900 | 834 |
| Asda | 21.9 | 7.1 | 1.078 | 24 | 145,000 | 1107 |
| H&M | 17.7 | 6.0 | 0.65 | 145 | 6,814 | 1051 |
| Aldi | 15.5 | 14.0 | 0.178 | 196.68 | 200,410 | 7397 |
| Morrisons | 14.9 | 2.7 | -1.1 | -233 | 104,813 | 497 |
| M&S | 13 | 9.3 | 0.672 | 57 | 72,000 | 1064 |
| Co-op | 11.3 | -4.2 | 0.28 | 89.60 | 56,465 | 2500 |
| John Lewis | 10.8 | 2.0 | 0.56 | 123.90 | 72,900 | 365 |
| JD Sports | 10.3 | 2.7 | 0.811 | 66.70 | 79,717 | 456 |
| Lidl | 9.3 | 18.8 | -0.75 | -283 | 33,000 | 960 |
| Currys | 8.5 | -4.0 | 0.118 | 10 | 14,850 | 301 |
| Boots | 7 | 8.3 | 0.6 | 1400 | 51,000 | 2177 |
| Next | 5.8 | 6.0 | 0.918 | 5 | 46,710 | 700 |
| House of Fraser | 5.6 | 15.8 | 0.661 | 96.73 | 10,000 | 28 |
| B&Q | 3.8 | 0.3 | 0.139* | -116.00 | 15,187 | 311 |
| Asos | 3.5 | -11.0 | -0.296 | -830.10 | 3,352 | 0 |
| Sports Direct | 3.1 | 8.6 | 0 | 33 | 32,000 | 469 |
| Ocado | 2.7 | 9.9 | -0.393 | -21.40 | 18,800 | 0 |
| Screwfix | 2.5 | 7.3 | 0.243* | -1.30 | 9,919 | 922 |
| Ikea | 2.46 | 11.9 | 0.111 | 23.70 | 11,728 | 22 |
| Very | 1.6 | 1.9 | 0.2 | -92 | 4,500 | 0 |
| Halfords | 1.5 | 15.3 | 0.51 | 234.41 | 12,901 | 750 |
| Boohoo | 1.4 | -17.0 | -0.16 | -69.20 | 5,079 | 0 |
| Matalan | 1.15 | 12.1 | -0.103 | -1260.53 | 15,000 | 200 |
| New Look | 0.844 | 0.6 | -0.87 | -244.31 | 9,768 | 418 |
| River Island | 0.825 | -90.0 | 0.75 | -69 | 8,000 | 300 |
| Homebase | 0.701 | -6.0 | -0.84 | -380 | 5,600 | 140 |
Methodology
Figures were taken from each company’s most recent publicly available set of financial results. Some editorial choices were made during the making of the list. While Amazon, Apple and H&M are not UK-based brands like the rest of the companies included on this list, they were all deemed significant due to their substantial market presence and stake within the UK.
This approach was taken to provide a comprehensive overview of the competitive landscape, highlighting brands that play a pivotal role in shaping the market. A deliberate decision was also made to include both Frasers Group and Sports Direct, despite its ownership under the Frasers Group. This choice was based on the recognition that, although it is part of the same corporate entity, each brand operates as a distinct and significant proposition within the market.