WATERSTONES BOOKSELLERS LIMITED

1. WATERSTONES BOOKSELLERS LIMITED 2012-03-01 → present
2. WATERSTONE'S BOOKSELLERS LIMITED 1997-06-01 → 2012-03-01
3. FINE RECORDINGS CLUB LIMITED 1958-08-22 → 1997-06-01

Values shown as filed in the company's annual accounts. — indicates the figure wasn't present under that line item in that period. About these numbers

Margins divide P&L lines by turnover. Gearing is liabilities over total assets. Current ratio is current assets over creditors falling due within one year. Interest cover is operating profit over absolute finance costs. Sector-distribution context coming next.

Accounting basis

FRS 101

Reporting scope

Standalone (parent only)

Auditor

Ernst & Young LLP

Audit opinion

Unqualified (clean)

Going concern

Affirmed

“The Directors have concluded from their analysis of current performance, forecasts and cashflow scenarios that the Group will continue to trade at levels which mean that they are able to meet their liabilities as they fall due throughout the going concern period, and also maintain sufficient headroom in relation to the Group's debt covenant under both the current and expected future financing arrangements.”

Group structure

1. WATERSTONES BOOKSELLERS LIMITED · parent
   1. Waterstones Overseas Limited 100% · England & Wales · Dormant
   2. Hatchards UK Limited 100% · England & Wales · Dormant
   3. Waterstones Academic Bookstores Limited 100% · England & Wales · Dormant
   4. Ottakar's Limited 100% · England & Wales · Dormant
   5. Ottakar's Town Limited 100% · England & Wales · Dormant
   6. The Waterstones Pension Trustee (Ireland) Limited 100% · Ireland · Non-trading
   7. Blackwell Limited 100% · England & Wales · Non-trading
   8. Blackwell UK Limited 100% · England & Wales · Dormant
   9. W.Heffer & Sons Limited 100% · England & Wales · Dormant
   10. Blackwell (Scotland) Limited 100% · Scotland · Dormant
   11. Blackwell (Trustees) Limited 100% · England & Wales · Dormant
   12. BH Blackwell Limited 100% · England & Wales · Dormant

Significant events

• “A £5m dividend was declared and paid in August 2024 to fund administrative costs elsewhere in the group.”
• “In May 2025, as part of an exercise to rationalise intercompany balances across the group, a dividend of £23.8m was declared and was utilised to offset an intercompany receivable from the company's immediate parent Book Retail Bidco Limited.”
• “As at date of the approval of these accounts, a £50m term loan and £50m rolling credit facility (which was undrawn at 3 May 2025) held by Bidco and originally due in September 2028, was extended with the same lenders by £25m, creating a £75m term loan and £50m rolling credit facility, which are now due in June 2029.”
• “In June 2025, a further £5.6m dividend was declared and paid.”

Auditor, going-concern and subsidiary information is drawn from the narrative of the latest annual accounts. About these numbers

Filings

2

last 12 months

Capital events

0

last 24 months

Officers appointed

0

last 12 months

Officers resigned

0

last 12 months

Direct counts from the register. No score, no rating — see the Filing timeline for the underlying events.

• Turnover

  +7%

  £528,397,000 → £565,632,000

• Cash

  -25.3%

  £72,227,000 → £53,927,000

• Net assets

  +35.3%

  £70,395,000 → £95,219,000

• Employees

  +1.7%

  3,641 → 3,703

• Operating profit

  +4.1%

  £43,831,000 → £45,634,000

• Profit before tax

  -7%

  £42,992,000 → £39,978,000

• Wages

  +18.1%

  £84,103,000 → £99,333,000

Each % is (latest − prior) ÷ |prior| for the line item as filed. The comparison is only shown when the latest and prior accounts cover broadly equal-length periods — short or long stubs (typical around incorporation or a year-end change) are suppressed rather than misrepresented. Lines a company doesn't report are omitted. About these numbers