Superdrug FY23 pre-tax profits hit £111m

Health and beauty retailer Superdrug has revealed its pre-tax profits jumped 43% to £111.6m during the 52 weeks ended 31 December 2023.

Superdrug said the positive figures have been driven by strong retail store performance, increased sales volume and continued own brand growth as sales increased 11% to £1.52bn.

Superdrug added that ongoing investment into best-in-class stores in prime retail destinations also contributed to robust sales during the financial period, with 14 new stores opening in key locations such as The Trafford Centre in Manchester, Brent Cross Shopping Centre and Braehead – Superdrug’s largest store in Scotland.

In addition to the new store locations, Superdrug enhanced and modernised 45 existing stores over the course of the year. Updates included new shop fronts, upgraded store Wi-Fi, new floor layouts, upgraded fascia and internal signage, improved flooring and ceiling tiles made from bio-soluble mineral wool, clay and starch and energy efficient LED lighting.

Superdrug CEO Peter Macnab said: “Our vision is to be the UK’s leading accessible health & beauty retailer with high quality, affordable products at the heart of everything we do. Our financial results demonstrate the trust that customers are continually putting in us and I would like to thank our colleagues for their ongoing hard work and commitment and for living and breathing our vision every day.

“Over the last year, we’ve continued to invest into our store estate to provide customers with best-in class shopping experiences. The strong store sales growth gives us the confidence that our strategy is working, and new stores are being welcomed by customers and the local community.”

He added: “As inflation continued to put pressure on households, at Superdrug we’ve invested heavily to keep our prices competitive and help families keep costs down. In May 2023, we reduced prices by 20%, equivalent to VAT across the Solait sun protection range to help make products more affordable for families and rolled out additional members only pricing across own brand ranges. The Superdrug Mobile tariff was also frozen for another year following an investment in a new platform and 5G services to provide our customers with more value for money.”