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Victoria boss praises management
Wilding praises managers for ‘extraordinary outcome’
Geoff Wilding, Victoria executive chairman has praised the efforts of the group’s management after it announced a record year in the face of global lockdowns and surges in demand.
‘I want to pay credit to all Victoria's management team, who, when it really mattered, delivered an extraordinary outcome for shareholders in a challenging operational environment. The result of their efforts is that the group is in an enviable operational and financial position to take advantage of opportunities to continue to create wealth for shareholders. The brilliant performance of our operational managers gave us the opportunity to strengthen the business during FY2021, Abingdon Flooring’s Chatsworth improving its market position, sustainably improving productivity and margins, and taking advantage of some unique acquisition opportunities from motivated sellers,’ he says.
The group saw sales rise by 6.6% to £662.3m in the year to 3 April, while an operating loss of £8.5m became a profit of £45.9m. The UK and Europe soft flooring division saw underlying EBITDA rise 18.7% to £49m, with sales 0.6% lower at £280.4m, despite the firstquarter lockdown which saw sales drop by 80%. ‘The foreseeable outlook for the business is encouraging. Demand remains strong and traditional leading indicators suggest that this demand will be sustained,’ says Wilding.
Amara picks Butlin to ripen growth
Etailer Amara has recruited Matthew Butlin to the new role of chief technology officer.
Butlin has spent his career heading up the technology functions of high-growth fresh food companies, most recently spending almost six years at BerryWorld as cto.
‘Amara is already a progressive retailer in the digital arena, and I am looking forward to building on this by supporting all technological areas to take the brand to the next stage of growth. I’m very pleased to be joining such a dynamic and creative team,’ says Butlin.
‘I am delighted to welcome Matthew to Amara. The role of cto is the final position we needed to fill to maintain the high double-digit growth we are still experiencing. He brings comprehensive knowledge and experience and will undoubtedly shape our technology strategy over the coming years,’ says Andrew Hood, Amara ceo and co-founder.
In June the retailer recruited Mark Higgins as chief operations officer.
Cox & Cox recruits Strudwick to head marketing
Former Sofa.com head of marketing Paul Strudwick has joined interiors etailer Cox & Cox as marketing director.
He had been at Sofa.com since July 2018. Before that he was head of marketing at Steamer Trading and previously spent five years in a senior marketing role at Sky.
‘This is a great appointment for Cox & Cox. Paul not only brings considerable experience, but also the boldness and energy to add to the team as we continue to break new ground,’ says Richard Bell, Cox & Cox ceo.
‘Cox & Cox has always been a brand I have admired – personally for its beautiful product range, but also professionally for its best-in-class customer-orientated marketing strategy. I’m thrilled to be joining the leadership team to drive the marketing strategy forward, amplify brand awareness, open new markets and ultimately continue to drive strong growth,’ says Strudwick.
John Lewis has appointed Kathleen Mitchell, Accessorize md to be trading director. She takes up the role next month.
Mitchell was promoted to md last October after three years as branding director. She has also held roles in marketing and management at L’Oréal.
‘Kathleen brings a huge amount of experience in modernising retail brands, which will help support the turnaround of our John Lewis business,’ says Pippa Wicks, John Lewis executive director.
‘She will lead trading strategy across all categories, ensuring we continue to inspire and delight our customers.’
Policy restored
Improved trading will see Headlam revert to a normal dividend policy sooner than it expected.
The group says it will restore dividends based on earnings in September, when its interim results are published.
It says it expects profits to be at least £35m, £6m higher than analysts’ forecasts. Residential performance has been strong and commercial sales have shown improvement, it says.
