Homewares giant Dunelm is handing back £14.5 million in furlough money on the back of a post-lockdown sales surge.
The business – which has been growing its out-of-town stores and online sales in recent years – said sales jumped more than a third to almost £360 million in the three months to September 26.
Online accounted for almost 30 per cent of that.
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Dunelm, which has its national headquarters in Syston, just outside Leicester, also said it would not be making any claims under Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s Job Retention Scheme bonus of £1,000 for every previously furloughed employee still employed at the end of January next year.
Back in the summer, as well as revealing that it claimed £14.5 million under the Government furlough scheme, it said social distancing measures in its stores and warehouses were estimated to be costing it £150,000 a week.
Dunelm chief executive Nick Wilkinson said the business had yet to see any disruption since the new Covid-19 regional restrictions came in, but added that they “recognise that the situation remains dynamic with a number of ongoing risks and uncertainties”.
With Covid-19 restrictions increasing and the future remaining uncertain, the company warned that it was “unable to provide any meaningful guidance”.
Mr Wilkinson said: “Recent months have seen homewares become even more relevant, as people spend more time in their homes up and down the country.
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“While we remain cautious about the continued uncertainty in the wider market, the resilience and flexibility of our business model leaves us well positioned as we enter our peak trading period, and we remain confident in our ability to grow market share and help even more customers create a home they love.”
He added that during the past three months, Dunelm has relocated two stores in Sunderland and Clydebank, with both sites heated with 100 per cent renewable electricity and low-energy lightbulbs throughout.
The move to repay the furlough money follows similar decisions by other firms, which have handed back more than £215 million they did not need or took in error.
According to HMRC figures last month, 80,433 employers have returned cash they were given to help cover workers’ salaries.