Online wine seller Naked Wines saw its sales surge 67% in June compared with last year as orders continued to rise even after the easing of the coronavirus-triggered lockdown in Britain.
The company also announced the departure of chairman John Walden, who has led the group through the sale of the Majestic Wine business to rebrand into a purely online retailer. Walden will be succeeded by non-executive director Ian Harding.
"It was a difficult personal decision to step down at this juncture however, it is the right decision for myself and Naked Wines," Walden said in a statement. "I leave the business in a strong position to grow and to realise its promise for an extraordinary future. I wish the team every success in the years to come."
First-Quarter Growth
Naked Wines, which has seen stellar growth in sales as British households ordered wine online during the lockdown, said first-quarter sales are now up 77%, although persisting market uncertainty means it could not provide forecasts for the year.
"The Board continues to believe that Naked is ideally positioned to be a long-term winner from the inflection in consumer demand for online wine as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic," it said in a trading statement.
The company had to temporarily stop taking new orders in May after an unprecedented jump in sales.
News by Reuters, edited by ESM. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
