Nationwide pet retailer Jollyes has reported half-year record sales and said it was on course to hit significant milestones over the coming 18 months.

In 2023 Jollyes expects to see turnover hit £100 million, its workforce pass the 1,000 mark and even has its sights set on opening its 100th store within 18 months.

As it gets ready for what it expects to be its busiest Christmas in the company’s 50-plus years, Jollyes reported sales in the half year to 27 November of £53.2 million, a 23 per cent increase against a year ago.

It follows annual sales of £87 million in the year to 29 May 2022, and puts Jollyes on track to reach £100 million turnover in January 2023.

The increase in turnover has been through a mix of higher sales at existing stores, new openings and acquisitions, and rising demand at its digital platform offering home delivery and click and collect services.

It will launch nine stores in 2022, including Edinburgh and Llanelli which are set to open on Friday 9th and Saturday 10th respectively. In July acquired Penparc, adding five stores in the Midlands, taking the UK total to 84.

Six more stores are scheduled to open by May 2023 and Jollyes expects to open its 100th store by early 2024.

The rapid expansion has seen Jollyes workforce grow to 983 at the half-year, with colleague numbers set to pass 1,000 in 2023 through new stores, additional jobs in its head office in Waltham Abbey, Essex, and supporting its online service.

Richard Cotter, executive chairman of Jollyes, said: “While there are signs that the pandemic pet ownership peak has passed and sector growth is returning to normality, it’s very encouraging to see our sales continue to increase significantly ahead of the market through a mixture of organic growth and expansion through new stores and acquisitions.

“The half year performance show that our approach of being a national group with a local approach is what customers want. We’re in a strong position to achieve our ambitious growth plans and we have significant opportunities to bring our unique offer to more communities across the UK.”

Jollyes chief executive officer Joe Wykes, who was promoted to the role in May said: “A key pillar of our growth this year has been our commitment to be the UK’s best value pet superstore – and because we know that’s going to be vital to our customers in 2023, we’re committed to bringing Jollyes value to more places right across the UK.”

Key business highlights:

• Acquired Penparc in July 2022, with five stores in the Midlands.
• Opened new stores in 2022 at Glenrothes and Stirling in Scotland, Wrexham in North Wales, Cookstown in Northern Ireland, Southport, Poole, Stockton-on-Tees, Edinburgh Hermiston Gait and Llanelli.
• Gave makeovers to stores at Lurgan, Newry and Enniskillen in Northern Ireland, Romford, Gosport, St Helens, Dartford and Bedford in England and Clydebank in Scotland as part of its investment and modernisation of its estate.
• Extended its affordable community pet clinics to over half its estate – now 43 Jollyes locations provide services such as vaccinations and microchipping.
• Continued investment in its online offer at www.jollyes.co.uk to bring a nationwide delivery on over 6,000 key items, integrating with a full click-and-collect service through its store network.
• Recruited 179 young people to get their dream job working with animals and invested in training to build on its reputation for expert advice.
• Gave colleagues a payment of £600 to help support them through the cost of living crisis – with payments timed to help around Christmas. The cost of living support, together with enhanced staff discounts, were made as a thank-you to colleagues for their hard work.

Key sales highlights:

• Footfall hit a record high in the half year as Jollyes served over three million customers.
• Membership of Jollyes’ PetCLUB loyalty scheme rose by over 16 per cent.
• Sales of its exclusive, high quality Lifestage dog food rose by 70 per cent and its exclusive Mcintyres brand is now outselling Pedigree.
• Continued trends in pet food that saw the combination of wet & dry purchases, and acceleration in frozen food raw feeding
• Top Lifestage choice for dog owners was the brand’s salmon grain free recipe, beating the Turkey Grain variety at Christmas. 
• Year-on-year growth in dog treats hit all-time highs with products like Natural Antlers doubling in sales.
• Stores also supported local dog and re-homing charities, donating over 100,000 meals over the last 12 months.

As Jollyes prepares for Christmas, it expects big sellers to include treats, toys and accessories, including seasonal gifts for dogs and cats such as Christmas stockings, advent calendars, Santa suits, squeaky yetis, gonks, winter coats and cosy beds.

Pet ownership enjoyed a huge boost during the pandemic amid growing awareness of the benefits animal can bring to well-being.

Jollyes has seen sales continue to grow despite signs that the pandemic boom in pet ownership has begun to tail off as more people have returned to work.

Jollyes also confirmed that its stores would be closed on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Years’ Day to allow colleagues to spend time with their families.