Ramsdens records record results as profits jump 12 per cent

Ramsdens saw growth across each of its divisions, with high gold prices and a lift in demand for high-end watches driving profits.

Peter Kenyon, chief executive of Ramsdens, said the results reflected the “strength of the group’s diversified business model”.

The company also opened seven new stores in the period, including in York, and opened a second head office in Teesside.

The firm has, however, lowered its planned number of store openings in the coming year to four, down from a targeted 7.5 per year.

Mr Kenyon said: ”We slowed down our visible expansion with new stores because we weren’t sure what the new Government would do when they came into power, and instead concentrated on our websites and new head office.

“I’m cautious of what will happen to the high streets. We’ve opened a new store on Stonegate, in York, and that's a very retail-focussed store, but it's a retail street and a full occupancy street.

“But if you go to your fringes, Coney Street in York is not as strong as it once was, and that is where you might start to see a few more empty units.

“Doncaster is also our best retail store, so we’re doing well in Yorkshire across our different services.”

Mr Kenyon said that the firm was also looking at other potential new stores in other Yorkshire towns, and that he hoped to see at least one new Yorkshire store open this year.

He added that changes announced in last year’s Autumn Budget would also mean increased costs for Ramsdens.

The firm said it remains a supporter of paying the Real Living Wage as its entry level pay, which increased 10 per cent in 2024 and is set to increase five per cent from April.

Mr Kenyon said he expects this to mean an annual increase of around £2m to the company’s wage bill.

The group said it also faces an annualised impact of around £0.8m from the Government's decision to increase employer national insurance contributions.

Ramsdens’ results come at a time when the number of independent pawnbrokers on UK highstreets continues to fall.

Speaking on the fall in numbers, Mr Kenyon said: “Most pawnbrokers are sole traders, and they usually don't have a succession structure within the business.

“I often find that when we acquire a business, the son or daughter of the owner is an accountant or doctor, and when the parent then wants to sell up, that's it.

“Historically, over the last couple of years, the regulatory burden on a sole trader has also increased no end, but we are able to absorb it, so we’re comfortable with that environment.”

Ramsdens said it will “continue to look for” acquisition opportunities.