Scotmid Co-op has reported a pre-tax surplus of £1.5m in its interim results for 2021, in line with the same period last year.
The society increased its turnover by £8.1m to £205.2m for the six months to 31 July compared with last year’s sales, while operating profit dropped slightly to £2.1m from £2.6m.
Chief executive John Brodie described the results as positive but advised caution when comparing this year’s figures with 2020’s interim results, which were heavily impacted by Covid related costs including lockdown, panic buying and store closures.
These half-year results follow Scotmid’s announcement that it will be closing around a quarter of its health and household goods stores Semichem.
It has since made a final decision on the six Semichem stores whose fate was undecided: four – Peterhead, Castlemilk, Dalkeith and Airdrie will remain open, and two – Maybole and Alloa are closing.
Looking ahead, Mr Brodie said in the report: “With the hospitality sector now back and trading, we have seen some trading patterns moving back towards their pre-Covid position but there is still uncertainty with rising case numbers and the possibility of the re-imposition of restrictions.
“Our interim result demonstrates the society’s ability to adapt and respond positively as these new trading patterns emerged. However, there continues to be major challenges to face, like rising costs and the widespread disruption to supply chains and uncertainty of the impact once government support is fully withdrawn and all Covid trading constraints fall away.”
