Boots Opticians Brand Outpaces Other Offers

Core optical business performs well for retail group under pressure from rivals. Boots Opticians returned sales of £101.3m, ahead 7.2 per cent, and delivered a profit of £4.2m - up 7.7 per cent - for the UK retailer. The results, for the six months to September 30, confirmed the importance of eye care, with Boots' Wellbeing division suffering further losses. The opticians and eye care division reported sales of £109m for the period, an increase of 12 per cent on the same period last year.

On a like-for-like basis, which takes account of the new store openings, including two Lasik clinics, the increase was 9 per cent. The results were driven by sales at the 300 Boots Opticians and the growth in the Lasik business, now available in eight clinics. Presenting the company's interim results last week, chief executive Steve Russell said: 'Boots Opticians is a good business, and people continue to buy glasses. Lasik contributed £7.6m to the £108.9m total sales figure.' Sales for the group were up 4.4 per cent to £2.3bn and turnover rose 2.5 per cent to £2.6bn for the six-month period reported. The company will present its plans for the future of Wellbeing Services on January 21.