WOOLWORTH'S GROWING TURNOVER.
The accounts of F. W. Woolworth and Company recently confounded market expectations by showing a steep rise in profits to a new high record figure. The chairman's speech last Friday showed that the market had not been wrong in thinking that higher costs would eat into the company's profit margin ; it had been wrong only in not recognising that this adverse factor could be more than offset by increased turnover. Mr. W. L. Stephenson explained that the good results had been obtained in spite of difficulties as regards prices and supplies, and in spite of operating on an increased expense ratio and a smaller profit ratio. Only a moderate proportion of the increased turnover came from new business, since most of the 34 branches which were opened during the year were small units. The major part of the increase arose out of the general improvement in trade conditions throughout the country.
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