Boots advantage card helps sales soar as shoppers sign up to bag beauty bargains
Boots has reported a surge in sales as the high street chemist benefited from savvy shoppers keen to rack up points on its advantage card loyalty scheme.
In the three months to 28 February 2023, the retailer’s sales increased 16 per cent as customers shrugged off the cost-of-living crisis to splash out on skincare and makeup.
Boots, which has 2,200 stores across the UK, said its beauty category delivered a record January in terms of sales, and premium beauty saw its biggest ever sales week in December.
Over the Christmas period sales were up 17.4 per cent – outperforming the market.
As inflation weighs heavy on the pockets of consumers, the chemist also launched over 1,300 promotions and also priced locked some 400 items.
The number of people signing up to Boots’ advantage card, which allows customers to purchase products at a discounted price, soared to 15.8 million.
Sebastian James, managing director of Boots UK & ROI, said: “More people are choosing to shop with Boots, largely thanks to our focus on value and our market leading beauty offer. This is reflected in our strong retail sales performance and our continuing market share growth, particularly in terms of Christmas trading.
“We also delivered an increase in pharmacy sales, despite the challenging sector backdrop. I would like to thank our wonderful team members for their continued hard work and focus on delivering for our customers”
It comes amidst speculation that Boots could be sold or floated by the end of the year as its US parent company Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) faces pressure to break up its European arm and turn its focus solely to its American division.
According to reports first published in This Is Money, it is the second time that WBA has tried to pawn off Boots, following a failed attempt in January 2022 when it was put on the market for £7bn – ultimately it was called off after the group was not able to find a suitable buyer.
City A.M has contacted Boots for a comment.