Morrisons boss says turnaround is in ‘full swing’

THE new boss of Morrisons says his turnaround is ‘in full swing’ after sales grew at the fastest rate for three years.

After struggling to make headway following its private equity takeover, the supermarket said sales in the three months to January 31 were 4.6pc up on a year earlier.

It has since launched an Aldi and Lidl price match scheme as it seeks to build on its success following a period of turmoil since Morrisons was bought by US private equity group Clayton, Dubilier & Rice for £7bn in 2022 and losing its position as the UK’s fourth- biggest supermarket to Aldi.

Chief executive Rami Baitieh, who took over in november, said that his plan to ‘reinvigorate, refresh and strengthen’ Morrisons was bearing fruit.

He said: ‘Those plans are in full swing. There’s a real sense

of optimism and renewal as we return to a growth path.’ And he said complaints from customers have dropped almost 60pc in the last 20 weeks.

Rival Asda has also struggled after it was bought by private equity firm TDR Capital for £6.8bn in 2020. Industry figures showed Asda’s sales in the 12 weeks to March 17 were just

0.2pc higher than a year earlier. By contrast, Morrisons saw sales rise 3.6pc although its market share was down to 8.7pc, from 8.8pc a year ago.

The purchases of Morrisons and Asda have raised questions over whether private equity is a suitable owner of companies in crucial sectors such as food.