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Next has revealed its profit before tax increased 5% to £918m as it focused on improving its product ranges, online service levels and managing its costs and profitability.
It comes as group sales also increased 6% to £5.84bn as the company onboarded further companies onto its Total Platform.
Next also confirmed its cash flow remained strong and it returned £425m to shareholders through a combination of dividends (£248m) and share buybacks (£177m).
Looking ahead, it said it expects profits to reach £960m as shoppers increase their spend due to rising wages.
Commenting on the performance, Next chair Lord Wolfson said it “has been a long time since we started a year in a more positive frame of mind”.
He added: “Last year was much better than we anticipated at this time last year, and the group has delivered its highest ever levels of revenue and profit. Perhaps more encouragingly, we enter the financial year with new avenues of growth along with a cost base that feels under control.”
Shares in Next were up 5.3% in early trading off the back of the announcement.
