McColl’s has seen its sales continue to fall in the third quarter following the collapse of its former wholesale supplier Palmer & Harvey last year, causing disruption to the convenience chain’s supply chain.
Like-for-like sales were down 0.9 per cent in the 13 weeks to 26 August at the retailer, which operates from around 1,600 convenience stores and newsagents across the UK.
On the plus side, the integration of 298 new stores acquired in 2017 helped to push revenue up by 0.6 per cent for the quarter, with a 12 per cent rise in the year to date.
In November last year grocery wholesalers Palmer and Harvey, who also supplied Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Costcutter, collapsed with more than £700 million debt.
McColl’s switched to using Morrisons’ wholesale service as a result, with the supermarket chainreviving the Safeway brand and agreeing to supply Safeway products exclusively toMcColl's.
The group reported that by mid-August 1,300 McColl’s stores had switched to being supplied by Morrisons, ahead of the original schedule.
In addition, McColl’s opened seven new convenience outlets and invested in 26 ‘store refreshes’ during the quarter, which the chain said helped to boost sales.
Commenting on the group’s performance, chief executive Jonathan Miller said:“The accelerated rollout of 1,300 stores to Morrisons supply is now complete, including all 700 stores formerly serviced by P&H.
“The rapid rate of transition has been a fantastic achievement, being delivered in less than nine months, and in the face of unprecedented disruption in the sector and for our business.
“With our new supply chain partner in place, we can refocus on day-to-day operations, including improving availability and rebuilding trade in those stores most affected by the disruption, and I’m grateful for the continued effort from all of my colleagues.”
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