The move to online following the pandemic allowed the company to report an increased profit for the year.

Group sales were up 4.2 per cent to $2.83 billion. Online sales jumped 44 per cent to $290 million and its normalised profit after tax was $154 million, an increase of 1 per cent. It declared a dividend of 19.5 cents a share.

While executive pay incentives had been cut as a cost-saving measure, Super Retail will make payments of between $250 and $1000 to its permanent, frontline staff for their effort during the pandemic.

The company said among the shifts in consumer behavior was the move to online, an uptake in DIY auto repairs and household projects, increased focus on personal health and wellbeing and a greater demand for domestic travel and outdoor leisure.

Its Super Cheap Auto business topped $1 billion in sales and its like-for-like sales were up 7.6 per cent. In the BCF business, fishing, camping and apparel were the strong performers. The Rebel stores benefited from a margin increase because of lower promotional activity.

The company said trading boomed in the fourth quarter and had continued into the first seven weeks of the new financial year.

Managing director Anthony Heraghty said the company’s retail strategy had allowed it to adapt quickly to changing customer behavior during the pandemic.

“Keeping stores open for our customers while successfully pivoting to meet increased demand in our online sales channels has enabled the group to profitably navigate an extremely challenging period for retail and deliver 44 per cent annual sales growth,” he said.