Headwinds, headwinds, headwinds: that was the key word used by Morrisons CEO Dalton Philips on a call with journalists today.

Philips was putting his spin on the retailer’s first-quarter results, announced this morning, which showed a 1.8% fall in like-for-like sales (excluding fuel). “Headwinds remain,” he said, before talking of the need to “change the weather report”.

The Morrisons boss pinpointed the twin gusts buffeting his company as online and convenience. “We’ve got to accelerate into those channels,” he said, like a skipper piloting his motorboat through choppy waters. But those expecting the company to announce a deal with Ocado today were sorely disappointed. Talks around IP and operating knowhow are merely ongoing, Morrisons said. “We’ll be selling food online by 31 January 2014,” finance boss Trevor Strain promised, but no details were forthcoming. Ocado shares took a knock on the news, before rallying a little as the day wore on.

If online was the elephant in the room, convenience offered somewhat brighter prospects. The company had taken a “major step forward”, Philips said, by picking up 80 sites for its M local stores in the first quarter of this year – many of them former Blockbusters, Jessops and HMVs. Morrisons is aiming to hit a rate of two c-store openings a week by the end of the year (hint: watch out London). M-Local is a compelling offer, Philips argued, as it devotes more space to fresh food than its rivals.

And fresh food was one area Morrisons was definitely willing to talk up. Fresh fish sales climbed 10.5% in the quarter, it said, with fruit and veg up 4% and beef up 2% - a sign the retailer had emerged from the horsegate saga largely unscathed. “Horsegate has demonstrated how seriously the British consumer thinks about their food,” Philips said. And, of course, controlling its supply chain, and knowing the provenance of its food, is one way Morrisons can “sharpen its point of difference” – another Dalton phrase.

So, has Morrisons done enough to keep those headwinds at bay? The forecast remains unsettled, to say the least. “It’s tough out there,” Philips reminded us.

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