THE best year to date is how confectionery wholesaler Hancocks summed up 2014.
Chief executive officer Mark Watson said: “Last year was perhaps Hancocks’ best year yet with the group turnover growing to a hefty £129m which is £15m higher than 2013.
“We purchased JTS in 2014 and this expanded the capacity of our distribution.
“Coupled with this, our e-commerce venture has seen remarkable growth across the year, with sales up more than 60% on the previous year.”
Announcing that it had
added a cash and carry in Rochester to its estate, Hancocks said that it now has more than 5,000 businesses registered to shop at its 20 outlets.
Watson continued: “We are finalising the development of some very exciting new product ranges, a number concerning licensed products.”
• The Bestway Group increased turnover by 1.2% to £2.55bn in the 12 months to June 2014.
Turnover in its wholesale business was £2.38bn creating a profit before tax of £54.3m.
Group chief executive Zameer Choudrey said: “All the group businesses continued to enhance their respective market share.
“Two years ago we identified three areas to drive growth.
“These were retail symbol/club growth, online sales and foodservice distribution.
“Our retail clubs turned over £640m, an increase of 6.7% over 2013.”
• During December, Landmark Wholesale cigarette sales rose by 14% and licensed sales increased by nearly 5%.
Those figures contributed to an overall rise of 10.5% from May to December compared to the same trading period last year.
Managing director Martin Williams said: “By ensuring Landmark delivers competitive pricing, great promotions and successful new product development, we are seeing excellent performances across the group.”
