Oliver Bonas profits down while sales climb
Oliver Bonas profits down is the headline from the retailer’s latest financial report. The company, known for blending fashion, homewares, furniture, and gifts, revealed that despite a strong year for sales growth, its profitability slipped in 2024.
Turnover increased to £150.285 million, up from £135.783 million the previous year, highlighting the continued strength of its brand and customer demand. Yet profit after tax fell to £5.463 million, a sharp decline from £6.826 million in 2023. The contrast shows how rising costs, higher taxation, and macroeconomic conditions are challenging retailers even as revenue improves.
Strong top-line growth
One of the most encouraging aspects of Oliver Bonas’s performance was its rising sales. The lifestyle retailer’s turnover climbed by more than £14 million year-on-year. Several factors contributed to this growth:
- Tighter stock levels, reducing the need for excessive markdowns.
- Improved like-for-like sales in the second half of the year after a flat first half.
- Expansion of store network, with seven new stores opened.
- Upsizing and relocating of seven additional stores to increase customer reach.
Gross profit also saw a healthy increase, rising to £83.282 million from £74.438 million. These numbers indicate that consumer demand for Oliver Bonas’s diverse lifestyle offering remains strong despite a tough economic environment.
Pressure on profits
While sales growth was impressive, profitability slipped across key measures.
- Operating profit fell to £8.2 million from £8.9 million.
- Profit before tax declined to £7.879 million from £8.638 million.
- Profit after tax dropped to £5.463 million from £6.826 million.
One major reason was the increase in the company’s tax burden. Last year, taxation stood at £1.8 million. In 2024, it rose to £2.4 million, putting additional pressure on the bottom line.
This widening gap between sales growth and profit decline underscores the challenges retailers face when inflation, supply chain pressures, and higher costs eat into margins.
Workforce expansion
Despite financial pressures, Oliver Bonas continued to invest in its people. The company added 88 new employees in 2024, bringing the total headcount to 1,684 staff members.
This growth supports the brand’s strategy of enhancing customer service, managing an expanding store portfolio, and strengthening operations in areas such as logistics, product development, and digital. It also reflects the company’s long-term confidence in its lifestyle model.
Expanding store footprint
Alongside its workforce, Oliver Bonas also expanded its physical retail presence. By the end of 2024, it operated 90 stores across the UK and one in the Republic of Ireland.
The year saw:
- Seven new stores opened.
- Seven existing stores upsized or relocated to improve visibility and capacity.
In addition to its own stores, the retailer continued to operate through UK and Irish websites, as well as its presence on the Next marketplace, broadening its multichannel reach.
A challenging economic environment
Oliver Bonas highlighted the broader economic backdrop as a major challenge to its profitability. The company noted several key factors:
- Cost-of-living pressures – Although disposable incomes rose slightly, this only brought many households back to pre-crisis levels.
- Increased savings ratio – Rather than spending more, consumers saved or paid down debt, limiting retail growth.
- Rising operational costs – Higher costs across the supply chain, logistics, and operations squeezed margins.
As a predominantly UK-focused company, Oliver Bonas is particularly sensitive to fluctuations in the domestic economy. Growth has been difficult to achieve, even with government ambitions to stimulate the economy.
Consumer behavior shifts
The company’s financial results also reflect broader changes in consumer behavior in 2024. Shoppers have become more selective with discretionary purchases, focusing on essentials while reducing non-essential spending.
Lifestyle retailers like Oliver Bonas, which thrive on offering products across fashion, home, and gifting, have to adjust to these shifts by managing stock carefully, controlling markdowns, and ensuring they provide value alongside style.
The rise in online shopping, coupled with economic caution, means that multichannel flexibility will continue to be vital for sustaining growth.
Retail outlook for Oliver Bonas
Looking ahead, Oliver Bonas expressed cautious optimism while acknowledging ongoing challenges. The company’s management said that while growth opportunities exist, the trading environment remains complex. Rising costs, cautious consumer spending, and a fragile economy will continue to put pressure on margins.
At the same time, Oliver Bonas remains committed to expanding its stores, strengthening online sales, and enhancing customer engagement. The company also believes government economic growth measures could gradually improve conditions, creating space for retailers to recover profitability.
The bigger picture for UK retail
Oliver Bonas’s mixed results mirror a broader pattern across the UK retail sector. Many companies are experiencing top-line growth but struggling to maintain profitability due to inflation, supply chain costs, and shifting consumer behaviors.
The results highlight how important it is for retailers to innovate, streamline operations, and adapt to changing economic realities. Oliver Bonas’s ability to keep growing sales while profits declined is a reminder of how resilient yet vulnerable lifestyle retailers are in today’s market.
Source: Fashion Network
Feels like tis goin’ down but they got good quality in products