Bestway’s gross profits dropped by 4.6% drop from £119m to £102.2m, in its accounts for the year ending 30 June 2025.
The decline in operating profit was even greater, at 5%, driven by the margin sacrifice, falling revenues and rising staffing costs.
In the published results, Bestway claims it is “sacrificing margin” in a battle to win shop owners’ spending amid “demanding” market conditions, with revenue decline attributed to a sharp fall in tobacco sales, which the wholesaler said had suffered a “double-digit” percentage drop during the year.
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Despite the declines, Bestway described its results as a “strong performance” in the context of a challenging year for the sector. It said that, excluding tobacco sales, revenue rose by a “single digital” percentage increase fuelled by inflation and “a small gain in market share in some key categories”. The wholesaler declined to say which categories, citing “commercial sensitivities”.
Bestway Wholesale also reported a 21% increase in retail staff, from 1,776 to 2,149. Dawood Pervez, managing director of Bestway Wholesale, told our sister wbsite Better Retailing the rise was due to investment in its “customer service and business development manager teams, and in delivering the right service for each retailer proposition”. Another factor given by Pervez is that “a number of stores” moved across into its retail and symbol group estates during the period.
The annual results for Bestway-owned Costcutter Supermarkets Group (CSG) showed a similar picture, with profits and revenue down by similar proportions with the same reasons given. However, while Bestway Wholesale’s operating costs rose during the period, CSG’s fell due to a “headcount reduction”, including the loss of nearly half of all CSG head office staff.
