Agenda: Sainsbury's and Next update the market

Sainsbury’s

The grocer will report its preliminary results on Wednesday, May 2. Sainsbury’s last reported that it expected full-year profits to come in “moderately ahead” of consensus after posting an increase in sales during the golden quarter.

The supermarket giant said like-for-likes excluding fuel grew 1.1% during the 15 weeks to January 6, as total sales in its core grocery business advanced 2.3%. Food sales were buoyed by its fast-growing online and convenience businesses, which grew 8.2% and 7.3% respectively.

Sainsbury’s is currently in consultation with “thousands” of shop floor staff as it resets its store management structure. The grocer is axing the roles of deputy manager, department manager and team leader.

Next

The fashion retailer will report its first-quarter trading update on Wednesday. Next unveiled a slide in profits and sales at its full-year results, with boss Lord Wolfson calling it the most challenging year in a quarter of century.

Pre-tax profits fell 8.1% to £726.1m on total sales down 0.5% to £4.11bn. Retail sales – those through shops – fell 7.9% to £2.12bn. However, online sales climbed 9.2% to £1.89bn in the year to January.

Wolfson outlined a new strategy – his most drastic shift in recent years – looking at Next’s store portfolio, in-store experience, generation of alternative revenue streams and an online overhaul.