Fortnum & Mason is a 300-year-old fine food and gift retailer which has been undergoing a period of dynamic change.
The retailer has had a clear focus on digital development over the past few years and relaunched its website in 2020 in a bid to improve the customer experience and accelerate international sales. Investment in digital marketing has been another priority.
The upmarket retailer also operates two travel stores and a satellite store in London as part of its strategy to become less reliant on the iconic Piccadilly flagship.
Having been seriously impacted by the pandemic in FY2020 and FY2021, Fortnum & Mason returned to a sound financial footing in FY2022, with total sales surging 42.2% to a record £186.5m in the year to 10 July 2022 and the business firmly back in the black after swinging into the red the year before. Both the domestic and international businesses performed well during the year as pandemic-related restrictions were lifted and shoppers returned to stores in their droves, including a faster than anticipated return of international tourists to the UK.
Fortnum & Mason is headed up by former Matchesfashion COO Tom Athron as chief executive following the departure of former boss Ewan Venters at the end of 2020.
The business is owned by the Weston family through Wittington Investments.
Innovation rating: 2
