The depressed share price is something of a sore spot. The stock has fallen around 67pc since Mr Baldock took over as chief executive and is down around 90pc since its all-time high in 2015.
Mr Baldock said wider issues with the London stock market are partly to blame. But he admitted there have also been other hurdles.
“I’ve had to deal with a few unpleasant surprises in this business,” he said.
Currys has struggled with heavy losses at Carphone Warehouse, the mobile phone seller that was merged with Dixons Retail to create Currys, as smartphone sales have moved off the high street and declined more broadly.
“Then Covid hit the business. We had the cost of living crisis and then problems in the Nordics.
“If you’re an investor, I think you’re entitled to say, ‘okay, you seem to be turning the corner, but I want you to show me that you’re on the right track’. I think that’s fair enough.”
He was at pains to stress that the company is truly making progress.
Last week, Currys boosted its profit forecasts for the year. It is now on track to post adjusted pretax profits of at least £115m for the year to the end of April. It previously said profits would come in between £105m and £115m.
Critics could argue that this is simply a case of a rising tide floats all boats: consumer confidence is on the up and there are hopes that interest rates will be falling by the summer.
However, Mr Baldock believes he and his team are due some credit.
“All of this is self-help. We’ve had no help from the market at all. The story is, in a really tough environment we’ve worked hard to get this business into better shape.”
“We don’t even need a healthy economy to progress as we are,” Mr Baldock said. “We will do it off our own back. It would be nice to get some help along the way, but my job is to carry on making Currys successful.”
This, he said, will remain the case “irrespective of who’s in office”.
William Turner is a seasoned U.K. correspondent with a deep understanding of domestic affairs. With a passion for British politics and culture, he provides insightful analysis and comprehensive coverage of events within the United Kingdom.
