Latest news with #Baitieh
South Wales Guardian
a day ago
- Business
- South Wales Guardian
Morrisons ‘bounces back' from cyber attack despite pressure on shoppers
However, it came as the UK's fifth-largest supermarket chain warned that rising inflation is driving 'subdued' sentiment among shoppers. On Thursday, the Bradford-based grocery business revealed that group sales grew by 4.2% to £3.9 billion for the 13 weeks to April 27, compared with the same quarter a year earlier. Rami Baitieh, chief executive of Morrisons, said he was 'pleased to report that Morrisons has bounced back strongly' from disruption linked to a cyber attack on its technology supplier Blue Yonder in November. The retailer had previously said the incident caused slower sales growth in the quarter to January and highlighted that its recent turnaround progress was 'set back' by the issue. The company was unable to see its product availability and stock levels for four days, leading to reduced availability in stores over the key trading period. However, Morrisons saw sales growth accelerate from 4.2% in the previous quarter to 4.3%, with a like-for-like growth figure of 3.9%. Meanwhile, underlying earnings grew by 7.2% to £344 million for the first half of its financial year. Bosses said the business had seen sales supported by investment into pricing and promotions amid intense competition across the sector and pressure on customer budgets. Mr Baitieh added: 'Against the backdrop of a challenging macro environment with inflation driving subdued consumer sentiment, value remains at the forefront of customers' minds. 'Throughout the first half we've worked hard on helping customers through these challenges with a rigorous focus on price, promotions and meaningful rewards for loyalty.' It comes as the company pushes on with its major turnaround plan, which has seen it overhaul a raft of store operations. In March, Morrisons announced that 365 staff were at risk of redundancy because of plans to close some of its cafes, convenience stores, florists and fresh food counters. As a result, it said it would shut 52 cafes, all 18 market kitchens, 17 Morrisons Daily convenience stores, 13 florists, 35 meat counters, 35 fish counters and four pharmacies. In its latest update, Morrisons said it has launched new trials including a new-look Market Street section within its stores. Morrisons added that it made a further £58 million in cost savings over the latest quarter, amid plans to save £1 billion by the end of the 2026 financial year.
Glasgow Times
a day ago
- Business
- Glasgow Times
Morrisons ‘bounces back' from cyber attack despite pressure on shoppers
However, it came as the UK's fifth-largest supermarket chain warned that rising inflation is driving 'subdued' sentiment among shoppers. On Thursday, the Bradford-based grocery business revealed that group sales grew by 4.2% to £3.9 billion for the 13 weeks to April 27, compared with the same quarter a year earlier. Rami Baitieh, chief executive of Morrisons, said he was 'pleased to report that Morrisons has bounced back strongly' from disruption linked to a cyber attack on its technology supplier Blue Yonder in November. The retailer had previously said the incident caused slower sales growth in the quarter to January and highlighted that its recent turnaround progress was 'set back' by the issue. The company was unable to see its product availability and stock levels for four days, leading to reduced availability in stores over the key trading period. However, Morrisons saw sales growth accelerate from 4.2% in the previous quarter to 4.3%, with a like-for-like growth figure of 3.9%. Meanwhile, underlying earnings grew by 7.2% to £344 million for the first half of its financial year. Bosses said the business had seen sales supported by investment into pricing and promotions amid intense competition across the sector and pressure on customer budgets. Mr Baitieh added: 'Against the backdrop of a challenging macro environment with inflation driving subdued consumer sentiment, value remains at the forefront of customers' minds. 'Throughout the first half we've worked hard on helping customers through these challenges with a rigorous focus on price, promotions and meaningful rewards for loyalty.' It comes as the company pushes on with its major turnaround plan, which has seen it overhaul a raft of store operations. In March, Morrisons announced that 365 staff were at risk of redundancy because of plans to close some of its cafes, convenience stores, florists and fresh food counters. As a result, it said it would shut 52 cafes, all 18 market kitchens, 17 Morrisons Daily convenience stores, 13 florists, 35 meat counters, 35 fish counters and four pharmacies. In its latest update, Morrisons said it has launched new trials including a new-look Market Street section within its stores. Morrisons added that it made a further £58 million in cost savings over the latest quarter, amid plans to save £1 billion by the end of the 2026 financial year.
Western Telegraph
a day ago
- Business
- Western Telegraph
Morrisons ‘bounces back' from cyber attack despite pressure on shoppers
However, it came as the UK's fifth-largest supermarket chain warned that rising inflation is driving 'subdued' sentiment among shoppers. On Thursday, the Bradford-based grocery business revealed that group sales grew by 4.2% to £3.9 billion for the 13 weeks to April 27, compared with the same quarter a year earlier. Rami Baitieh, chief executive of Morrisons, said he was 'pleased to report that Morrisons has bounced back strongly' from disruption linked to a cyber attack on its technology supplier Blue Yonder in November. The retailer had previously said the incident caused slower sales growth in the quarter to January and highlighted that its recent turnaround progress was 'set back' by the issue. The company was unable to see its product availability and stock levels for four days, leading to reduced availability in stores over the key trading period. However, Morrisons saw sales growth accelerate from 4.2% in the previous quarter to 4.3%, with a like-for-like growth figure of 3.9%. Meanwhile, underlying earnings grew by 7.2% to £344 million for the first half of its financial year. Bosses said the business had seen sales supported by investment into pricing and promotions amid intense competition across the sector and pressure on customer budgets. Mr Baitieh added: 'Against the backdrop of a challenging macro environment with inflation driving subdued consumer sentiment, value remains at the forefront of customers' minds. 'Throughout the first half we've worked hard on helping customers through these challenges with a rigorous focus on price, promotions and meaningful rewards for loyalty.' It comes as the company pushes on with its major turnaround plan, which has seen it overhaul a raft of store operations. In March, Morrisons announced that 365 staff were at risk of redundancy because of plans to close some of its cafes, convenience stores, florists and fresh food counters. As a result, it said it would shut 52 cafes, all 18 market kitchens, 17 Morrisons Daily convenience stores, 13 florists, 35 meat counters, 35 fish counters and four pharmacies. In its latest update, Morrisons said it has launched new trials including a new-look Market Street section within its stores. Morrisons added that it made a further £58 million in cost savings over the latest quarter, amid plans to save £1 billion by the end of the 2026 financial year.
Rhyl Journal
a day ago
- Business
- Rhyl Journal
Morrisons ‘bounces back' from cyber attack despite pressure on shoppers
However, it came as the UK's fifth-largest supermarket chain warned that rising inflation is driving 'subdued' sentiment among shoppers. On Thursday, the Bradford-based grocery business revealed that group sales grew by 4.2% to £3.9 billion for the 13 weeks to April 27, compared with the same quarter a year earlier. Rami Baitieh, chief executive of Morrisons, said he was 'pleased to report that Morrisons has bounced back strongly' from disruption linked to a cyber attack on its technology supplier Blue Yonder in November. The retailer had previously said the incident caused slower sales growth in the quarter to January and highlighted that its recent turnaround progress was 'set back' by the issue. The company was unable to see its product availability and stock levels for four days, leading to reduced availability in stores over the key trading period. However, Morrisons saw sales growth accelerate from 4.2% in the previous quarter to 4.3%, with a like-for-like growth figure of 3.9%. Meanwhile, underlying earnings grew by 7.2% to £344 million for the first half of its financial year. Bosses said the business had seen sales supported by investment into pricing and promotions amid intense competition across the sector and pressure on customer budgets. Mr Baitieh added: 'Against the backdrop of a challenging macro environment with inflation driving subdued consumer sentiment, value remains at the forefront of customers' minds. 'Throughout the first half we've worked hard on helping customers through these challenges with a rigorous focus on price, promotions and meaningful rewards for loyalty.' It comes as the company pushes on with its major turnaround plan, which has seen it overhaul a raft of store operations. In March, Morrisons announced that 365 staff were at risk of redundancy because of plans to close some of its cafes, convenience stores, florists and fresh food counters. As a result, it said it would shut 52 cafes, all 18 market kitchens, 17 Morrisons Daily convenience stores, 13 florists, 35 meat counters, 35 fish counters and four pharmacies. In its latest update, Morrisons said it has launched new trials including a new-look Market Street section within its stores. Morrisons added that it made a further £58 million in cost savings over the latest quarter, amid plans to save £1 billion by the end of the 2026 financial year.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Morrisons toasts jump in sales and hikes savings target to £1bn
BRADFORD-based Morrisons has reported that sales jumped to £4 billion in its most recent quarter, days after the supermarket said hundreds of people are facing redundancy. The grocery giant said sales were 2.4 per cent up over the quarter to January 26 compared to the previous year, while it also hiked its savings targets. The company said it had made £56 million in savings during the period and increased its long-term savings goal from £700 million to £1 billion. Chief executive Rami Baitieh said Morrisons was trading in 'a challenging environment' and that the savings target would 'help us offset cost headwinds, invest for customers and remain competitive in a fast-changing market'. On Monday, Morrisons announced that 365 people's jobs were at risk of redundancy because of plans to close some of its cafes, convenience stores, florists and fresh food counters. The supermarket chain said it was costing more to run the services than it was making from customer spending. The closures will see it shut down 52 cafes, all 18 market kitchens, 17 Morrisons Daily convenience stores, 13 florists, 35 meat counters, 35 fish counters and four pharmacies. Morrisons is the UK's fifth largest supermarket, according to data supplied by analysts Kantar, and hires around 95,000 staff across the country. Mr Baitieh added that the supermarket 'has made exceptional progress in a very short time and that is entirely down to the hard work, positivity, talent and customer focus of the colleagues in our stores, in our food-making sites and in our operations across the country'. The rising sales came despite a wide-ranging cyber attack before Christmas which was affecting the availability of products in its stores well into January. The company was unable to see its product availability and stock levels for four days after a cyber incident hit its technology supplier, Blue Yonder.
