Owner of UK's favourite crisps brand sees monster sales surge

Walkers, the UK's leading crisps brand, has reported a surge in sales of over £60m during its most recent financial year. The Pepsi-owned company, which divides its UK accounts across three entities, has just disclosed its 2023 results, well beyond the 30 September deadline set by Companies House.

Walkers Snack Foods, the manufacturing division, posted a turnover of £359m for 2023, up from £309.7m in the previous 12 months. This increase was attributed to the reimbursement of increased costs associated with manufacturing activities, as reported by City AM.

Pre-tax profit also rose from £28.3m to £31.6m during the same period. Walkers Snacks, the sales and marketing division, reported a turnover of £228.2m for the year, up from £209.8m.

However, its pre-tax profit fell from £90.8m to £56.8m. The division stated that its turnover increased due to higher commission earned "driven by favourable performance on snacks and grains" and higher reimbursement costs compared to 2022.

It added that its pre-tax profit decreased primarily due to a £40m dividend it received in 2022, which was not repeated in 2023. This decline was partially offset by an increase in interest income in 2023 by £10m.

Meanwhile, turnover at Walkers Snacks (Distribution) fell from £146.4m to £141.5m, while it went from making a £6m pre-tax profit to a loss of £1.6m.

The division said its turnover declined "primarily due