// B&M grevenue rose 22.5% in the 13 week period to December 26
// UK sales rose 21.1%, with the retailer opening 18 new stores during the quarter
// Founder & CEO has handed himself another massive payout of £30m. Staff will also get bonuses.
B&M has recorded strong growth over the festive period thanks to the increased number of customers shopping for discounts, prompting its founder to hand himself another massive payout of £30 million.
Group revenue rose 22.5 per cent in the 13 week period to December 26, with its UK stores generating revenue growth of 26.6 per cent.
On a like-for-like basis, UK sales jumped 21.1 per cent, with the retailer opening 18 new stores during the quarter.
READ MORE: B&M founder defends £44m payout to family trust after sales boom
B&M said it plans to open 18 more stores during the fourth quarter, bringing the total to 45 gross for the full year, offset by 10 closures.
Meanwhile, B&M’s value convenience store chain Heron Foods also witnessed “solid” like-for-like sales growth for the quarter, opening two new stores during the same period.
The retailer’s French fascias Babou and B&M France recorded a slight drop in revenues of 1.4 per cent due to a four week lockdown which ended November 28.
B&M narrowed its full year profit guidance to be between £540 million and £570 million, after the repayment of £80 million in business rates relief.
The retailer’s performance prompted the founder and chief executive of B&M, Simon Arora, to hand himself another massive payout of £30 million via a special dividend of 20p-a-share for shareholders.
As Arora and his family are the biggest shareholders in the business, he will pay himself £30 million, in addition to a £44 million dividend payout revealed two months ago.
B&M will also share some of the profits with staff, and has agreed to pay 30,000 workers an extra week’s wages.
“We are awarding some 30,000 store and distribution colleagues an extra week’s wages in recognition of their considerable efforts,” Arora said.
“The safety and wellbeing of our customers and colleagues has remained our priority during these unprecedented times, whilst we have worked hard to provide customers with the everyday essentials they need.
“Notwithstanding our status as an essential retailer, with lockdown restrictions in the UK having tightened there remain uncertainties ahead.
“With our combination of exceptional value and convenient out of town locations, we are confident that our business model will prove highly relevant to the needs of customers in 2021.”
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter
