A.F. Blakemore & Son well positioned for growth
The company currently has 268 company-owned SPAR stores and a wholesale distribution business.
Chairman Peter Blakemore has announced a year of good progress for 2020/21 in his statement on A.F. Blakemore & Son Ltd’s annual financial results for convenience retailer.
A.F. Blakemore’s group sales for the financial year ending on 24 April 2021 declined by 5% from the previous year, falling from £1.053bn to £1.001bn.
The company’s foodservice and wholesale customers across the travel, tourism, leisure and educational sectors were heavily disrupted by the Covid-19 pandemic, but A.F. Blakemore’s multi-channel strategy enabled the business to meet changing demands and utilise its workforce to good effect.
“As a result of great customer service and an investment in pricing, we enjoyed good sales across our community-based SPAR convenience stores, with consumers shopping more locally, and whilst less frequently, with a higher basket spend,” said Peter Blakemore.
In recognition of the changing needs of its commercial customers, A.F. Blakemore has also invested in new online ordering platforms, driven by machine learning and artificial intelligence, for SPAR retailers, Wholesale Distribution customers and Foodservice customers.
The network consists of 268 company-owned SPAR stores and wholesale distribution to 719 independently owned SPAR stores.
