Industry & Business

Musgrave has announced its results for the financial year 2016. The Group reported sales of €3.7 billion and profit before tax of €73 million. Net cash was €121 million and shareholder funds were €249 million at year end.

Commenting, Chris Martin, Musgrave Chief Executive said: “2016 saw a strong performance by Musgrave benefitting from investment in our brands, a clear focus on cost reduction and the delivery of a transformation programme which we initiated in 2014 to turnaround the business and return to growth. Investing in our brands during the recession was a successful strategy positioning us to benefit from recovering economies in the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland and Spain. Our business performed strongly in 2016 with turnover up 3.4% on a constant currency basis and we are well positioned to deliver long-term sustainable growth, capitalising on the anticipated growth of the grocery and foodservice markets across the island of Ireland and Spain.

“Our investments in value, range, own brand, digital and in-store design resulted in SuperValu, Centra, Daybreak and MarketPlace occupying market leadership positions in 2016. We are also innovating with our brands to drive growth. This has included award winning formats, new concepts, digital innovations and new brands like Frank and Honest – our artisan take away coffee brand – which has been launched in SuperValu and Centra in response to increased consumer demand for freshly prepared food and drink in-store.

“We are continuing to drive our business and to look for new opportunities as appropriate. While the business is performing well to date in 2017, we remain cautious as a result of the uncertainty created by Brexit and its potential to slow growth in the Irish food and grocery retail sector.”