Introduction

B&M, the British retailer, known for being a variety retailer and its large discounts, is currently undergoing a multi-phase plan to recoup its losses amongst shoppers. CEO, Tjeerd Jegen, in response, has implemented phase 1 of his “Back to B&M Basics” plan.

 

Why are Sales Slumping?

B&M’s confidence amongst consumers and investors had been called into question. Amongst accounting errors and fierce competition on the high street, this has affected both stock prices and sales.

In 2025, B&M reported an accounting error, which the company states was due to an update to the company’s operating system. This led to overseas freight costs - totalling to £7m - not being correctly recognised as the cost of goods sold. This has had a marked effect on the company's share price, with its value plummeting by 50% in 2025. This has raised questions surrounding the integrity of business functions. This has prompted CFO, Mike Schmidt to step down.

Alongside a lack of investor confidence, B&M’s sales amongst shoppers has also slumped. The discount retailer has seen fierce competition from other retailers. Shops such as Aldi and Lidl offer their own store brands at a much lower price B&M can feasibly offer. Additionally the presence of online retailers also adds another dimension of competition as shoppers could simply buy cheap consumer goods online.

 

How is B&M Trying to Win Back its Shoppers?

Tjeerd Jegen has set out his “back to B&M basics” plan to encourage Like for Like (LFL) growth in stores. In response to the competition, Jegen proposes that the stores should focus on making the shelves more attractive rather than containing the best bargains.

Jegen has focused on 4 key points; these being price, promotions, range and availability:

  • Price - Focusing on creating the best prices amongst discounters
  • Promotions - Maintaining and focusing new lines alongside reigniting excitement for store front bays
  • Range - Clearing old stock and increasing efficiency for stope operation logistics
  • Availability - a re-centreing on sales less than standards

This is a part of a multi-phase strategy which long term will focus on customer insights and ecommerce potential.

 

Legal Team Involvement

  • As B&M is seeking to reduce its SKU (Store Keeping Units) to encourage newer product lines, the involvement of Contract Law teams will be crucial to review existing supply agreements.
  • B&M will work with Consumer teams to ensure that items comply with UK pricing regulations. Prices for key value items being clearly listed including VAT totals.
  • As B&M aggressively adjusts pricing, competition lawyers will have to to ensure pricing strategies and supplier arrangements remain compliant with UK and EU competition law.

 

Future Outlook

Shore Capital has stated that the future for B&M is uncertain.

Tjeerd Jegen stated that for FY (Financial Year) 26, there are promising signs to the plan's success. Jegen states that Cash Conversion - how long it takes a company to convert cash spent on inventory to cash received from customers - has remained strong. Additionally, Jegen has encouraged greater range of seasonal products. 

Despite this, B&M saw flat LFL sales. To combat this, the company has stated that its second stage for its plan will focus on using customer insights to drive sales.  One concern noted by the investment bank Shore Capital was the rise in energy costs due to the conflict in Iran. As energy costs rise, B&M will seek to offset these, making recovery harder.