Wickes Group (LON:WIX) executives told investors the home improvement retailer delivered what CEO David Wood described as a “stellar year” in the 52 weeks ended 27 December 2025, with growth across both its retail and design & installation (D&I) operations and a step-up in profits driven by volume-led sales gains.
Management said the group’s 5.9% sales increase supported operational leverage, lifting adjusted profit before tax (PBT) 14.4% to £49.9 million. The company also reiterated its intention to increase investment in its store estate, including a revised long-term target of 300 stores across the UK compared to the previous ambition of 250.
2025 results: sales up 5.9% and adjusted PBT up 14.4%
Operating costs rose 6.7%, which management attributed to cost headwinds including higher National Living Wage and National Insurance costs. George said productivity savings of £12.4 million helped offset inflation but did not fully neutralize it. The company also increased investment in technology by around £8 million, which management framed as building foundations for future growth.
Even with those investments, the company reported an 11% increase in operating profit and a 14.4% rise in adjusted PBT, which management said demonstrated “healthy operational leverage.”
Retail and D&I: volume-driven outperformance and improving momentum
In retail, George said like-for-like growth was again driven exclusively by volume, with “mild deflation” for most of the year. Both TradePro and DIY contributed to growth, with active TradePro membership rising to 643,000 and TradePro sales up 9%. DIY sales grew in the “mid-single digits,” according to management.
In D&I, management pointed to improved performance following initiatives launched in the second half of 2024. George said the order book had grown for five consecutive quarters, while delivered revenue recorded three consecutive quarters of growth. He also noted that non-like-for-like growth included contributions from new stores and from Wickes Solar prior to the first anniversary of the acquisition, which occurred toward the end of the first half.
Wood said D&I initiatives discussed at an investor event in October at the Staines store were translating into sales, citing range changes (including “paint to order” for bespoke kitchens and expanded furniture colors in the Wickes Lifestyle range), digital and physical enhancements, and a new design tool that management expects will improve how customers visualize and plan kitchens and bathrooms over time. Wood also said customers were rating the business positively, citing a 4.4 “excellent” Trustpilot score.
Cash, shareholder returns, and updated guidance
Wickes ended the year with £92 million of cash, ahead of management expectations, and averaged £153 million of cash across the year. George highlighted a £25 million working capital contribution, compared with flat working capital in the prior year, driven by growth in the D&I order book, improved payment terms with some suppliers, and project timing that shifted certain cash outflows into 2026. He said the company expects some benefits to unwind this year, resulting in a £5 million to £10 million working capital drag in 2026.
Capital expenditures were £28.7 million in 2025, below the company’s prior guidance of £30 million to £35 million due to project timing that shifted some openings into 2026. Looking ahead, George guided to 2026 CapEx of £40 million to £45 million, reflecting both catch-up projects and a stepped-up investment plan.
On shareholder returns, management said:
- The final dividend was maintained at 7.3p, taking the full-year dividend to 10.9p per share.
- The company completed a 20 million share buyback in 2025 and announced a further 10 million share buyback.
- Wickes also spent £12.5 million buying shares for employee share schemes and said it would buy shares for employee share plans rather than issue new shares.
George said the newly announced 10 million share buyback would be “the last one for the time being” as the company prioritizes higher growth CapEx. He added that after a lower effective tax rate in 2025 due to a successful capital allowances claim, the effective tax rate would return to a more normal level, “slightly above” the standard 25% rate.
On trading, Wood said the first 11 weeks of 2026 reflected the benefits of a “balanced business model.” While wet weather weighed on outdoor demand, management said the company saw continued volume growth in indoor projects and D&I. George said the company remained “comfortable with market expectations for growth in PBT in 2026.”
Store strategy: revised ambition of 300 stores and acceleration from 2028
The company’s store estate expanded in 2025 with five new stores and 11 refits, and Wood said 83% of the estate is now in the “new format.” For 2026, management outlined plans for 4-5 new store openings and 15-20 refits and refreshes.
Wood’s larger strategic update centered on accelerating the store rollout to reach 300 stores across the UK. He said Wickes estimates its combined addressable market across home improvement products and installation services—including kitchens, bathrooms, and solar—at about £35 billion, with Wickes holding around a 5% share.
Management said it is not introducing a new store format, but expanding use of smaller-footprint stores of roughly 15,000 to 20,000 square feet versus the current estate average of 27,000 square feet. Wood said these locations still include a full retail offer and a kitchen and bathroom showroom, sometimes on a mezzanine (“showroom in the sky”) to maximize space. He pointed to Staines as an example of a smaller store generating more than £10 million in annual revenue from a 20,000 square foot footprint.
In Q&A, Wood estimated that the increased store target would skew toward “pure white space” opportunities, suggesting a mix of roughly 70% white space and 30% deepening penetration in underrepresented larger towns and conurbations, citing Glasgow and Bristol as examples. George added that the smaller stores can generate comparable EBITDA because lower rent supports profitability even with somewhat lower revenue.
Management said new stores typically break even after about 12 months on average—some “almost immediately”—with D&I often ramping first, followed by DIY and then trade as TradePro membership builds locally. George said stores generally reach maturity after another three to four years, aligning with a 4-5 year maturity timeframe and the company’s ROCE target of 25%.
Wood said Wickes would be “focused, disciplined, and highly selective” in site selection, emphasizing it was “not in a space race.” Management expects that once a pipeline is secured, the rollout program could accelerate from 2028 onward to “around 10+” new store openings per year, alongside about 20 refreshes and refits per year, with a shift toward refreshes as the estate is largely already converted.
Wood also said the 300-store ambition would create over 2,000 new jobs. He added that an accelerated rollout would increase property CapEx by around £20 million per annum in the medium term, while the company intends to maintain a strong balance sheet and grow dividends over time within its stated dividend cover range of 1.5x to 2.5x as profits grow.
Consumer trends, service initiatives, and energy efficiency opportunity
Wood said Wickes tracks consumer sentiment through a monthly “Mood of the Nation” survey. He noted that over 30% of local trade customers reported a “12-month-plus” pipeline of work, while planned spend among customers considering a new kitchen or bathroom was stable but below historical norms.
Management emphasized speed and convenience initiatives, including a new 15-minute click-and-collect service and Wickes Rapid, which offers same-day delivery in under three hours for products up to 800 kilograms. Wood said early customer satisfaction scores for Rapid have been strong, with repeat customers. He also cited customer satisfaction metrics showing 85% of customers rated click-and-collect as “excellent or good,” while home delivery scored 89%.
On energy solutions, management described a long-term opportunity spanning solar, batteries, inverters, air source heat pumps, and EV charging. Wood said that combined market could reach £10 billion to £12 billion annually within five to six years, driven by decarbonization goals and the need to improve the energy efficiency of UK housing stock. He said demand can also be influenced by energy security concerns, pointing to heightened interest in solar during the autumn 2023 energy crisis.
Wood and George also addressed macro sensitivity, noting that Wickes sources around 70% to 75% of cost of goods domestically, with about 7% spent in Asia. George said the company is hedged for 100% of its energy needs in 2026 and 50% through 2027. Management said it was not currently seeing a change in consumer sentiment from recent geopolitical turbulence, but would monitor conditions as the year progresses.
About Wickes Group (LON:WIX)
Wickes is one of the UK’s best known home improvement retailers. Having opened our first store in 1972 we now have 228 stores across the UK, employing 7,400 colleagues and offering products ranging from kitchens and bathrooms, to paint, tools and timber.
Wickes is a successful, growing, cash generative and profitable business, operating in the large and growing £27 billion UK Home Improvement market. Over the past few years Wickes has consistently outperformed the market, growing share and delivering a CAGR growth rate double that of the market.
At Wickes, we have a clear purpose, which is to ‘help the nation feel house proud’, and we do this by focusing on our three customer segments – Local Trade, Do-it-for-me and DIY retail.
