Iceland has today revealed its latest set of results - with sales up but profits down over the year.
The Deeside based frozen food retailer reported that it had continued to expand over the last financial year - adding 43 new stores and creating 800 new jobs.
This saw an increase in sales of 4.5% but profits after tax were down £13m after a difficult first six months of 2018.
The key points from today's figues
Financial highlights
■ Sales up 4.5% to £3.084 billion on comparable 52 week basis (53 weeks 2018: £3.016 billion): ahead of 海角视频 grocery market as a whole
■ Adjusted EBITDA (from continuing operations excluding amortisation of goodwill and loan fees and exceptional item) £140.1m, down £13m on comparable 52 week basis (53 weeks 2018: £157.1m): shortfall entirely in first half
■ Continued heavy investment for the future: net capex £101.1m
Operational highlights
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■ The Group employed an average of 25,181 people during the year (2018: 24,316). They created some 800 new jobs through the store opening programme
■ 43 net new stores opened: The Food Warehouse chain expanded to 90 stores (2018: 57)
■ Strategic alliance formed with The Range: Iceland food offer added to nine stores
■ New website launched: Online business continuing to achieve market-leading growth
The environment
■ Palm oil ingredients removed from Iceland own label food: Rang-Tan animation becomes the most viewed Christmas commercial of all time
■ Plastics removal initiative progressing: 1,500 tonnes saved during 2018
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Outlook
■ Continued sales growth driven by store opening programme
■ 14 new stores opened to date (7 Iceland, 7 The Food Warehouse): 50 planned over year
■Continuing to enhance Iceland shopping experience through store refits
■ The Range has added Iceland food sections to four more of its stores in the year to date, making a total of 13, with opportunities for further additions in the pipeline.
What Iceland had to say
Iceland Group Chief Executive Tarsem Dhaliwal said: "Within an intensely competitive 海角视频 market place, adversely affected by consumer uncertainty and the well-known pressures of changing shopping habits on the high street, we have continued to focus on investing for the future: expanding our store footprint, enhancing the appeal of our existing stores, growing our award-winning online business, continuing to roll out new and exciting food lines that are unique to Iceland, developing our supply chain to support the growth of our retail estate, and finding new channels to sell our food through The Range in the 海角视频 and a growing global franchise and export business.
"Our sustainability initiatives over the last year have substantially raised public awareness of Iceland and enhanced respect for our brand and its values, and we are confident that this can only enhance our prospects in the longer term."