Makro is back in profit, Booker has revealed.
The cash & carry wholesaler, acquired by Booker in April last year, had reported losses of £18m in 2012.
However, in its annual results released this morning, Booker said Makro had turned a profit of £11m in the year to 28 March.
“Makro has fitted nicely into the group,” Booker said. “We have embarked on a rapid turnaround. As a result cash management has been tightened and we have improved profits from a loss of £18m in 2012 to a profit of £11m this year.”
Despite the return to profit, Booker said Makro’s sales had fallen 9% during the year after it “exited some unprofitable product categories”.
“We are planning that Makro will continue to experience a sales loss in the year ahead as we continue to focus on professional customers,” it added.
“In Sheffield, Belfast and Preston we have developed a new Makro/Booker format. The format has been tailored to the local market and we expect to complete five more of these conversions in the year ahead.”
Booker reported a 25% increase in group pre-tax profits to £118.7m on sales up 17.3% to £4.7bn. Like-for-like sales, excluding Makro, rose 2.1%, with non-tobacco sales up 4.4%. tobacco sales were down 1.7%.
Internet sales rose 10% to £777m, and sales to retailers operating under its Premier symbol fascia rose 12%.
“The group’s trading in the first seven weeks of the current financial year is ahead of last year,” Booker added.
“We anticipate that the challenging consumer and market environment will persist through the coming year and the UK’s food market remains very competitive.
“We are on track to deliver an outcome for the new financial year in line with our plans and to make progress in this challenging environment,” it added.
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