SVM's Lawson hunts for opportunities in ‘bombed out' UK retailers

Margaret Lawson has been snapping up "bombed out" UK retailers in her SVM UK Growth fund, as the survivors of the massacre on the high street emerge stronger and with less competition.

While a number of high street stores – such as HMV - have gone to the wall after disappointing sales over the Christmas period, Lawson said investors can make decent returns from the survivors, many of which have de-rated. Lawson has been buying stocks such as Dixons. It struggled last year but posted an 8% increase in sales over the Christmas period. “I bought into a few bombed out retailers, like Dixons, which has managed to refinance its business by reducing its presence on the high street,” she said. Dixons’ share price plummeted at the start of last year, reaching its lowest poi...