Gift sets boost Boots Christmas sales
The owner of health chain Boots reported a strong Christmas today driven by sales of beauty and cosmetic gift sets.
Alliance Boots said its UK retail division, which has more than 2,500 stores, saw like-for-like sales grow 4.1% in the five weeks to December 31, while group revenue increased by 14.1% compared to the previous year.
The privately-owned company, which owns more than 3,000 stores worldwide, said topsellers in the UK over the festive season included the No. 7 hat box gift set, soap and glory gift set and Champneys range.
Health and beauty retailers have been cushioned from the tough economic climate as cosmetics items become increasingly seen as essential purchases by consumers.
Elsewhere, the pharmaceutical wholesale division, which supplies medicines to more than 160,000 pharmacies, doctors, health centres and hospitals in 21 countries, saw revenue surge 21.3% or 1.6% on a like-for-like basis.
In a letter to staff, executive chairman Stefano Pessina said the group’s strong performance was driven by its exclusive offering and international expansion, particularly its acquisition of German pharmaceutical giant Anzag.
Mr Pessina said the group remains on track to deliver its 2011/2012 financial and operational targets.
But he added: “Looking to 2012, we expect the economic environment to remain tough with continuing pressure on both consumer and governmental expenditure.”
Alliance Boots, which was taken private in an £11.1bn takeover in 2007, employs around 75,000 staff in the UK and posted a 14% increase in underlying profits to £1.05bn in the year to March 31.
