Booker chief executive Charles Wilson is now focused on broadening the business after recording a solid performance during the fourth quarter.

Total sales were up 3.2% compared with just 1.3% for the previous quarter, while non-tobacco like-for-likes were up 4.1%.

The group has also managed to slow down the slide in tobacco sales during the past 12 weeks.

Tobacco sales were down 5% compared with 7.9% for the third quarter.

Total sales for the 52 weeks to 28 March were up 2.3% on the same period last year.

This was despite an overall fall in tobacco sales of 5.4%, which it put down to the impact of the ban on smoking in public places.

Wilson was quick to point out that the increases had come about because the group was selling more to its independent and catering customers rather than as a result of inflation.

Inflation in the wholesale sector was currently running well behind the levels in the Retail Price Index, Wilson added. Booker was also attempting to hold prices down for independents through its Everyday Essentials promotion on bread, milk, eggs and potatoes as well as general price cuts across the business, he added.

"These results show that our policy of choice up, price down and better service is working.

"Customer satisfaction is improving and we are taking a bigger share of our customers' spend," said Wilson.

He expected that the company's net debt would decrease to about £50m when it announced its preliminary results on 22 May, compared with £76.5m a year ago.

This was better than its original debt forecast for

2008 of £62m.

The business was well placed to cope with the challenges facing the sector this year, and in particular consumers tightening their belts in relation to the credit crunch.

"The Everyday Essentials promotions are storming ahead while we are now selling more than £400,000 of Euroshopper products every week," he said.

Shares in Booker rose by 2p to 24p, valuing the wholesaler at £365m. Broker Investec forecasts EBITDA profits of £46m for the full year.

Topics