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Electronics retailer Maplin has reported sales of £237 million as part of its year-end results, an increase of 6.3 per cent year-on-year.
Maplin says this is the strongest growth it has seen since 2008, and the 4.3 per cent like-for-like sales growth marks six consecutive quarters of positive growth.
Its online sales now represent almost ten per cent of total sales, with internet channels recording full year growth of 20.6 per cent.
The introduction of features such as reserve at store, and click and collect were key drivers of the growth, along with the investment into a new Hybris web platform in 2014.
The retailer also opened four more core stores in Perth, Ayr, Paisley and Selly Oak to bring its total count to 218. A further two new trial formats were launched in the year in the form of a small 1,000sq ft travel hub in Glasgow Airport and Maplin’s first trade counter in Sheffield.
Maplin says it nearly tripled its product range in just two years, from 15,000 SKUs in 2013 to 36,000 SKUs in 2014 to 44,000 in 2015.
"Innovation has also been key in Maplin’s continued improvement," the reatiler said in a statement. "New and exciting ranges of high tech products have been added throughout the year, many of which have been exclusive to Maplin, or jointly developed by Maplin with its vendors.
"Product innovation in categories including drones, CCTV cameras, portable power, powerline adaptors and the 3Doodler rank in Maplin’s top 10 sellers, and have been received enthusiastically by customers. Drones were the big hit of the past 12 months, with sales of over 10,000 units, followed closely by CCTV cameras."
Dashboard cams have also been a success for Maplin.
John Cleland, CEO at Maplin, said: “This has been another positive year’s performance for Maplin. It’s been a great team effort and I would like to thank all of our colleagues for the commitment they have shown in putting our customers first.
“The results show that our focus on improving the Maplin product and service proposition, along with our commitment to the best customer experience, are all working extremely well.
"Our latest research with 6,000 shoppers shows a customer service index score of 92 per cent, and an industry leading Net Promoter score of 72 per cent, a massive improvement from 56 per cent in late 2013.”
“In the year ahead we will continue to unite our sales and service channels for the best customer journey and will continue to invest in the help and advice our colleagues provide, as well as continuing to support product innovation.”
