// Iceland blames losses on Brexit uncertainty and December general election
// Iceland had £5m of income owing to the rising price of packaging waste recovery notes
Iceland has blamed its widening losses on the ongoing uncertainty around Brexit and the December general election.
The frozen food retailer recorded pre-tax losses of £71.8 million for the year to the end of March.
Iceland also said it had £5 million of income owing to the rising price of packaging waste recovery notes – as a result, adjusted EBITDA fell to £133 million.
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Despite the drop in EBITDA, overall sales grew to £3.2 billion and the retailer opened new 40 new stores and 31 Food Warehouse outlets.
Meanwhile, the Covid-19 crisis has changed consumer behaviours and in turn has boosted its market share due to the location of its stores on neighbourhood high streets and retail parks, as well as the rise in online sales.
Kantar recently revealed that Iceland reached its highest mark in 20 years with 2.5 per cent of the overall grocery market.
The grocer said it spent £19.4 million on costs, some of which were as a result of the Covid-19 crisis.
The costs included providing staff with PPE equipment and implementing social distancing.
Last month, Iceland founder Malcolm Walker and chief executive Tarsem Dhaliwal took full ownership of the retailer after buying out the remaining stake from external investor Brait.
The executives bought out the South African conglomerate’s 63 per cent stake in the frozen food specialist for £115 million to form a newly-established company Iceland Foods.
The sale will be made in three tranches, with the first £60 million being paid today to Brait and the remaining instalments of £26.9 million and £28.1 million due to be paid in July 2021 and 2022 respectively.
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