Camelot launch strategic review after disappointing lottery sales

UK National Lottery operator Camelot has launched a strategic review following annual sales declines in its marquee product.

On Wednesday, Camelot announced that National Lottery ticket sales in the 12 months ending March 31 totaled £6.92b, the fourth-best result since 1994 but an 8.8% decline from the sales total in Camelot’s 2015-16 financial year.

Camelot’s decline was broad-based, with retail sales down £606.6m to £5.4b, while digital (interactive and subscription) sales were off £63.3m to £1.52b. Mobile sales were an outlier, rising £23.8m to a record £619.3m.

As a result, Camelot has launched a strategic review of its National Lottery operations, with a focus on coming up with a plan to boost sales, studying its investments in technology and systems, the current business structure and long-term succession. Camelot says it will offer an update on this review when it turns in its fiscal H1 results later this year.