Ocado on Tuesday said it had bounced back from a fire at its warehouse in Andover, Hampshire, but admits Brexit could hit the supply of some foods.
The online grocer, in its first results since unveiling a joint venture with Marks & Spencer, said sales are up more than 11% in the quarter to September at £386 million.
Chief financial officer Duncan Tatton-Brown said the costs of planning for Brexit are hard to measure, but that much management time has been spent on it.
Waitrose has already warned that some fresh foods might become unavailable. Tatton-Brown said: “We are all going to suffer the same on mozzarella cheese and Parma ham if there is a problem getting them into the country,” adding: “We can’t stock up on raspberries.”
The average order size at Ocado slipped slightly to £105.42, but customers are buying more often.
Melanie Smith, chief executive of Ocado’s retail arm, said: “These first set of results from the joint venture between Ocado Group and M&S show the resilience of Ocado following the Andover fire and the momentum the business now has.”
The fire at its flagship robot warehouse spread after a detection system failed and staff turned off sprinklers.
Ocado shares rose 15p to 1364p, leaving the business valued at £9.65 billion.
Shore Capital said in a note: “Given the high valuation of this technology platform there remains the need for flawless execution for the company to sustain its premium rating, particularly for the solutions business.”
The joint venture will give M&S a home-delivery service by September 2020. The group has technology deals with eight major retailers, including US group Kroger and France’s Casino.
