AF Blakemore & Son has reported operating profit growth of 65% from £14.8m to £24.4m thanks to ‘strong performance’ across its Spar stores, despite facing “national supply chain challenges” last year.
The family-owned business and largest Spar wholesaler in the UK also saw a rise in sales of 3.9% to £1.24bn for the financial year ending 30 April 2023.
Chairman Peter Blakemore said the group “demonstrated fantastic resilience” over the period and largely attributed the growth to its Spar retail performance.
He said this was “enhanced by improved stock availability and significant productivity within our supply chain”.
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Blakemore said that “store teams have delivered exemplary customer service and made a notable contribution to the communities in which we operate”.
He explained that investments in fresh food to go and convenient fresh food for later categories last year, alongside new to market product launches such as the viral Prime Hydration drink, “contributed to a notable increase in like-for-like sales”.
AF Blakemore & Son also opened a new facility in Bedford to evolve its logistics network and recovered its foodservice and wholesale volumes to pre-pandemic levels.
As part of the company’s investment in technology, Blakemore has “achieved a 12% drop in carbon emissions”.
This comes as AF Blakemore appointed Carol Welch as its new CEO in April, bringing experience in the branded food and drink sector, having previously held positions at PepsiCo, Costa Coffee and Associated British Foods.
