78% Micro
20% Small
1% Large
1% Mid
0% Mega
INSIGHTS - APRIL 2025
UK Retail Industry
UK Retail Industry Information
The retail industry covers the resale of new and used goods (mainly for personal or household consumption) by shops, department stores, stalls or mail-order houses.
Active Businesses
259,690
Annual Sales
£629bn +
Employees
3,122,848
Economic Contribution
£115bn
Tags
Location of Retail Companies
Retail Companies by Size
Largest Retail Companies
Turnover
Tesco Plc
£68.2bn
Tesco Stores Limited
£49.2bn
J Sainsbury Plc
£32.7bn
Sainsbury's Supermarkets Ltd
£27.9bn
Asda Stores Limited
£24.6bn
Retail Companies by Age
34% Startup
33% Young
21% Established
12% Mature
0% New
Oldest Retail Companies
Established
Fastest Growing Retail Companies
36% Declining
22% Healthy
18% Rapid
16% High
9% Low
Fastest Growing Retail Companies
3yr CAGR
Retail Industry Competitive Environment - New Entrants vs Leavers
Retail Industry Valuation
EBITDA Multiple
Retail Industry Valuation
Turnover Multiple
Retail Industry Valuation
Net Asset Multiple
Note - from March 2020 multiples are calculated monthly, prior to this they were calculated on an annual basis.
UK Retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles Industry Insights
There are 259,690 active Businesses in the UK with combined annual sales of £629 billion .
The Industry employs around 3,122,847 people and contributes £115 billion to the economy.
The most popular location for Retail companies is London with 75,022 and the fewest are located in Northern Ireland with 4,737.
The largest Retail company is Tesco Plc with a turnover of £68.2bn. 78% of the industry is comprised of Micro companies with only 1% Large companies.
12% of the Retail Industry is made up of 12% Mature but the majority are Startup businesses (34%) the oldest company is The Festiniog Railway Company founded in 1832.
Retail industry has a number of high growth companies (16%), the fastest growing company is Harrods Beauty Limited with a 3 year growth rate of 191%. Other fast growing companies include The Sofa Delivery Company Limited (171%), Mamas & Papas (Concessions) Limited (161%) and Dnata Catering Uk Limited (158%).
The UK Retail Industry’s valuation has been improving over the past 3 years with a current EBITDA multiple of 8.39x, Turnover multiple of 0.94x and a Net Asset multiple of 2.50x.
