B&M's chief executive will step down in April after the discount retailer downgraded profit guidance for the second time in 2025. Alex Russo will retire at the end of April after less than three years as B&M's boss and five years since initially joining the company as its chief financial officer.
The group endured challenging trading conditions during 2024, amid lacklustre consumer confidence, a weak economic backdrop, and unfavourable weather conditions. B&M narrowed its annual earnings before nasties guidance to between £620million and £650million in January after its UK like-for-like sales contracted for the second successive quarter.
And the Liverpool-based firm, which owns supermarket chain Heron Foods, on Monday further reduced its earnings outlook to a range of £605million and £625million. It blamed recent trading, economic uncertainty, and the 'potential impact' of currency volatility on the worth of its stock and creditor balances.
Downgrade: B&M has reduced its earnings outlook to a range of £605million and £625million. B&M European Value Retail shares slumped 8.4 per cent to 266.5p on Monday morning following this announcement, making them the FTSE 250 Index's biggest faller. B&M's sales have expanded more slowly since the end of Covid-related restrictions, which significantly boosted demand for its low-priced grocery, DIY and gardening products.
Unlike many other retailers, B&M could keep its stores open during the multiple lockdowns because the UK Government classed them as 'essential'. But having increased its sales by more than a quarter, or about £1billion, during the first year of the pandemic, this slowed to 3.5 per cent in the first nine months of the current fiscal year.
Two months ago, the company was demoted from the FTSE 100 Index along with housebuilder Vistry and Mike Ashley's Frasers Group. Tiffany Hall, chair of B&M, said Russo had 'driven a relentless focus on high operational standards and low costs, enabling the company to provide great products and everyday low prices to our customers whilst generating continued strong cash returns for our shareholders'.
Before joining B&M, Russo was the group finance director at rival homeware retailer Wilko, which collapsed into administration in 2023 under a massive debt pile before B&M bought many of its stores. Russo also held senior financial roles at Asda and Tesco's South Korean subsidiary and worked as a director at B&Q owner Kingfisher and Boots UK.
He said: 'I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at B&M since joining in 2020. 'The business has been successfully steered through the pandemic years and is now larger and stronger, with group revenues increasing by almost 50 per cent and cash distributions to shareholders in excess of £2billion during my tenure.
'It has been professionally rewarding to assemble and work with a high-quality leadership team and to retire leaving growing businesses with great potential in both the UK and France.'. Affiliate links: If you take out a product This is Money may earn a commission. These deals are chosen by our editorial team, as we think they are worth highlighting. This does not affect our editorial independence.
