Warmer weather and soft comparatives helped embattled shopkeeper B&M (BME) return to like-for-like growth in its core UK business in the first quarter to 28 June 2025.

However, this growth came in at the lower end of market expectations and the variety goods discounter warned of lower margins in some general merchandise categories, raising fears of a potential margin reset.

With consumers counting the pennies, business should be booming at a value-focused chain like B&M, so the market is clearly losing patience with the retailer’s inability to deliver meaningful like-for-like growth and new chief executive Tjeerd Jegen has his work cut out in turning the company around.  

Group revenue rose 4.4% in the first quarter driven by growth from new space and positive quarterly like-for-like performances in both the B&M UK and B&M France chains.

While UK like-for-like sales rose 1.3%, improving from a 1.8% decline in the fourth quarter, this was shy of the 2% to 3% increase analysts were expecting.

B&M’s statement noted negative like-for-like sales in FMCG (fast moving consumer goods), where further work to ‘strengthen the proposition’ continues, while the retailer warned ASP (average selling price) deflation had led to ‘a lower trading gross margin year-on-year in some general merchandise categories’.

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