Sales at Nisa shot up over Christmas, thanks in part to its new supply deals with Costcutter and McColl’s.
Total sales at the retailers’ cooperative rose by 17.7 per cent to £277.2 million in the 10 weeks to 31 December, while fresh food sales soared by 23.1 per cent to £43.1m.
Of particular note were pre-pack fruit, up 38.1 per cent; pre-pack vegetables, up 38.6 per cent; and ready meals, up 43.7 per cent.
Like-for-like sales rose 1.7 per cent.
Nisa signed deals with convenience chains Costcutter and McColl’s following the sudden collapse of Palmer & Harvey in November.
During the 10-week Christmas period, the number of stores supplied by Nisa grew by 269, with 163 of these added by the two contract wins: 140 from Costcutter and 23 from McColl’s.
The remaining 106 new stores were added by “substantial organic growth”.
Chief executive of Nisa Retail Arnu Misra commented: “We successfully invested in promotions to assist our members over the key festive trading period, resulting in positive like-for-likes and good organic growth in store numbers.
“The total number of stores served by Nisa was also increased by two large new contract wins. Nisa has delivered a strong programme to help drive sales and footfall in our members’ stores, and with the support of our members, we have built a solid foundation for 2018.”
Nisa is set to be acquired by the Co-operative Group, after its members approved the £143m deal in November.
The takeover is awaiting approval by competition authorities and is expected to be completed in the spring.
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