Coffee with the chocs at Thorntons
CHOCOLATE group Thorntons said its recovery strategy is proceeding well and it will press ahead with plans to put coffee shops in up to 50 of its outlets.
Chief executive Peter Burdon stressed that the group is not jumping on the coffee shop bandwagon. 'Cafés will never be huge for us and the maximum number will be 50. They are nothing like Starbucks outlets and will always be within one of our shops,' he said.
Other innovations include a range of cakes and puddings sold through major food retailers and a deal with Tesco to sell a range of chocolate bars throughout the supermarkets chain.
The range in Thorntons' own shops has, however, been cut back by around a fifth, a move Burdon said has been well received by customers, whom he believes were often overwhelmed by the huge number of similar products on offer.
Sales for the 28 weeks to 12 January rose by 3% to £102.4m, or 4.1% like-for-like. In the second half so far, the like-for-like figure is 2.6% higher after a 4% advance for Valentine's Day.
Helped by lower interest charges and stronger margins, underlying profits for the first half were ahead by 9.2% to £10.3m. The interim dividend is unchanged at 1.95p.
