Blog: Sainsbury's boss Justin King has delivered the goods

Sainsbury’s boss Justin King has already been bombarded with questions about when he is leaving the grocer, and will undoubtedly face more throughout the day.

His next move will be interesting, as will the grocer’s succession plan.

Yet we should not let this overshadow his achievement at Sainsbury’s. While pre-tax profits dipped slightly in the full year results today, underlying profits were up 6.2% and the grocer delivered its 33rd consecutive quarter of like-for-like sales growth.

King and his team coped better than the rest of the grocers when the downturn hit and it has stood them in good stead ever since. While many commentators thought Sainsbury’s would be among the hardest hit because of its premium offer and shoppers were flocking to the likes of Aldi and Lidl, King managed to resonate with consumers.

He introduced initiatives such as Switch & Save from branded to own-brand offers which helped customers continue to shop with them but at slightly cheaper prices.

This has since been followed up with Brand Match - its voucher scheme comparing prices with the other grocers - which again aims to underpin value credentials.

And throughout it all, Sainsbury’s has continued to invest in its own-brand offer and developing its GM. This has meant that when customers want to start treating themselves again, they see a lot of innovation in stores to go for to keep them shopping there.

King claims he isn’t off just yet and there is certainly still plenty to do. Sainsbury’s online grocery sales have hit £1bn but it has been slower to move on some of the initiatives of its rivals, such as drive-thrus and online clothing, and digital innovation is key for every retailer’s growth.

Yet for today, King may well get sick of batting off questions about his future, but he should be proud of his achievements over the past near 10 years.