Harrods returns to profit ahead of new COO arrival

Harrods’ latest accounts reportedly show a return to profit after the previous year was weighed down by compensation and associated costs linked to historic abuse suffered by victims of former owner Mohamed Al-Fayed.

Summary of results

• Harrods recorded a pre-tax profit of £84.9 million for the 52 weeks ended 31 January 2026.
• Turnover increased by 1.2% to £1.08 billion during the latest reporting period.
• The result reverses a prior-year loss affected by compensation and associated costs linked to historic abuse by former owner Mohamed Al-Fayed.

The financial results, which have reportedly been filed at Companies House but are not publicly available yet, come as the Knightsbridge luxury department store carries on with its womenswear redevelopment and looks to bring end-to-end operations under a new Chief Operating Officer role in September,

Return to profit

According to Sky News, Harrods made a pre-tax profit of £84.9 million over the 52 weeks ended 31 January 2026. It also reported a turnover of £1.08 billion, representing a 1.2% year-on-year increase.

The results show a marked increase compared with the £36.5 million pre-tax loss recorded in Harrods' financial results for the year ending 1 February 2025. That year, turnover reached £1 billion, while operating profit fell from £213.9 million to £177.7 million.

The department store noted that this prior financial performance reflected the department store's investment in employee salaries and higher distribution costs, alongside a transformation in its enterprise resource planning (ERP) system and the financial impact of the historical abuse victim redress programme.

Managing Director Michael Ward said at the time that trading conditions across luxury remained challenging, but maintained that Harrods would continue investing in its customer offer and Knightsbridge store. "Our results demonstrate the resilience of our strategy of commitment to exceptional customer offerings and ongoing investment in this period across our Knightsbridge store including the continued redevelopment of our womenswear spaces and renovation of The Georgian restaurant," Ward previously said. "The current domestic and global economic environment means that current trading conditions in the luxury sector remain challenging. However, we remain confident in the strength of the business, and the resilience of the luxury sector, and that we will continue to drive progress towards longer-term growth and performance objectives."

Redress scheme costs

Harrods' previous accounts also showed that the department store had set aside £62.5 million for compensation and related costs involving survivors of historic abuse tied to Al-Fayed. That provision was not repeated in its most recent filing, although extra costs beyond the original amount were still recorded.

The Harrods Redress Scheme was launched on 31 March 2025 and stopped accepting new applications on 31 March 2026. So far, it has compensated roughly 100 women who have come forward to make redress claims, while hundreds more are still seeking to reach settlements with the luxury retailer.

Leadership structure changes

The return to profit follows a wider restructuring of Harrods’ senior management. Chief Information Officer Andreas Efstathiou will become Chief Operating Officer in September, bringing its supply chain operations, facilities management, engineering and security function under one executive role.

The structure also names Mark Blundell as Chief Retail Officer and Sarah Myler as Chief Brand & Reputation Officer. Geoff Weaver came into the business as Chief Financial Officer in 2025.