Boots has reported retail sales growth of 5.9% for the three months to 29 February 2024, on top of a 16% increase in the prior year quarter.
The health and beauty retailer said more customers are shopping at Boots with footfall up both in store and online, and a twelfth consecutive quarter of retail market share growth.
In-store sales growth remained steady, up 4.5%, with flagship, shopping centre and travel stores performing particularly well. Airport stores saw double digit growth year-on-year, supported by a new store opening at Luton, and refurbishments at Gatwick and Manchester.
Boots.com and the Boots app continue to grow rapidly with digital sales up 16.8%, driven by particularly strong sales of beauty and personal care products.
Boots added that Christmas trading was particularly strong, with sales up throughout December. The beauty and gifting categories performed well with some of the most popular gifts being own brand gift sets, such as the No7 Ultimate Skincare Collection and the Soap & Glory Pop Spa Classics set.
In healthcare, Boots saw services deliver growth of almost 40% driven by continued strong performance of Boots Online Doctor. In retail health, steady sales growth was driven by gains in the Boots own label range, with own brand vitamins and pain relief performing particularly well.
Sebastian James, Boots UK & ROI CEO, said: “I am really pleased to see our positive momentum continue across the whole business, with more people shopping with us both online and in store, and strong gains in both our key markets of healthcare and beauty.
“I am particularly proud of our pharmacy team, who worked incredibly hard to launch Pharmacy First in England; the feedback from patients has been brilliant and it is clear that they value the convenience of accessing a trusted healthcare professional on their local high street with no appointment necessary. We see a significant opportunity to do more in this area, helping customers to get better quickly, supporting communities and relieving the burden on the NHS.”
There was also an increase in sign-ups to the Advantage Card as one million new members joined in the past year, with Boots crediting its Boots Price Advantage. Earlier this month, a survey of UK shoppers on what loyalty means to them in 2024 saw Boots top the charts.
Learn more about how Boots uses its Advantage Card to drive loyalty in the exclusive company profile in the RetailX Customer Value Chain report.
The full report also looks at how loyalty is a key tool for Swedish fashion retailer H&M and UK supermarket Tesco, as well as Amazon, Argos and Decathlon.
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