// McColl’s warns profits for the year will miss forecasts
// It blames poor weather and declining consumer confidence
// It expects full-year earnings before tax and interest to be £32m, “marginally below expectations”
McColl’s has issued a full-year profit warning, with the convenience grocer slated to miss forecasts due to poor weather and declining consumer confidence.
The retailer said its earnings before tax and interest for the financial year ending November 24 are expected to be £32 million, which it said is “marginally below expectations”.
It said profitability was dented by “softer market conditions” in the second half of the year as it was impacted by poor summer weather and weaker consumer confidence.
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Chief executive Jonathan Miller said it has been “challenging year” after seeing McColl’s share value fall by 38 per cent in the past 12 months.
The retailer said total revenues slid 1.9 per cent over the full year, driven by the divestment of some sites.
Meanwhile, like-for-like sales were flat year-on-year, reflecting an improvement on a 1.4 per cent like-for-like sales decline from 2018.
McColl’s has also made “progress” in its debt reduction programme, reducing net debt to £94.1 million from £98.6 million a year earlier.
The retailer said it also strengthened its leadership team over the year, with the appointment of Robbie Bell as chief financial officer and Robert Crampton as chief commercial officer.
“While 2019 has been another challenging year for the business, we have made good progress against our goals of operational stability and good retail execution,” Miller said.
“We are also pleased to confirm that we have continued to reduce net debt, with further progress anticipated due to our ongoing capital discipline.
“The fundamentals of the convenience channel are strong and we remain a resilient, profitable and cash generative business.
“We are confident in our plans to rebuild momentum in 2020 and look forward to providing a fuller strategy update at our preliminary results in February.”
with PA Wires
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