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Pets at Home has revealed that it expects its retail profits to drop in FY26 to within a range of £115m to £125m, as a result of the uncertain economic backdrop for both demand and inflation.
The retailer also stated that it expects increased costs of around £30m following changes to employers’ National Insurance contributions, new packaging regulations and the rebuilding of variable pay.
Despite this, its group underlying profit before tax for the year ended 27 March 2025 is expected to be £133m, in line with previous guidance.
The company also announced that it has successfully completed the transition of online sales to its Stafford distribution centre, meaning it begins FY26 with a single distribution centre.
In its vet category, Pets at Home expects further progress in underlying PBT albeit against the comparative of the exceptional levels of growth delivered in FY24 and FY25. It is also accelerating the rollout of new practices aiming to deliver at least 10 in FY26, together with a further 15 extensions.
The company also now expects the provisional findings of the CMA investigation to be released over Summer 2025, rather than previous expectations of May 2025.
Lyssa McGowan, Pets at Home CEO, said: “We are making good progress in delivering our strategy of building the world’s best pet care platform, although the market remains challenging with subdued consumer confidence and the business facing significant external cost headwinds in 2025.
“Our vets business is delivering very strong growth and continuing to outperform the market, with a robust pipeline of new openings in place for the coming year leveraging our unique practice owner model. In Retail, we’re confident that with our major infrastructure investments behind us, we are well placed for future growth as the short-term pressures ease and the consumer environment improves.”
She added: “I would like to thank our incredible colleagues and practice teams, whose care, support, expertise and advice creates a better world for pets and the people who love them, every single day.”
