B&M chief Simon Arora circles weaker rivals as profits soar

The boss of discount retailer B&M on Wednesday said he is eyeing the stores of struggling rivals as the company ploughs ahead with its aggressive expansion plans.

Chief executive Simon Arora, who turned B&M into a £3 billion business with help from his brother Bobby, said: “We are agnostic whether [stores] come from existing operators or new space.

“Whether it’s M&S or a CMA-led disposal in the case of Sainsbury’s and Asda or a distressed retailer such as Homebase. We have an open mind, we don’t care.”

The company, which sells everything from curtains to toasters and frozen food, saw pre-tax profits jump by 23.6% to £226.1 million on revenues of £2.9 billion for the year to March 31, also up by 22.4%.

The discount chain, which has 576 B&M stores, plans to have up to 950 in Britain in the next few years. Shops in the south-east are now more profitable than those in the north, Arora told the Standard.