The garden centre chain has posted full-year results showing sales up from £111.9m to £136.4m for the year ending February 29, 2012.
Pre-tax profits went up 5.6% to £10.5m during the period, boosted by new store openings in Lisburn, Braehead, Ashford, Livingston, Carlisle, Peterborough and Liverpool. Dobbies' restaurant offering, which makes up a fifth of all sales, largely helped boost turnover over the summer, according to chief executive James Barnes.

He said: "Given the recent weather, there's no surprise that gardeners have been spending less in their gardens this season. However, Dobbies is also renowned as a day-out destination and the feel-good factor of the time off work over the summer holidays has helped families to enjoy days out together - particularly spending time in our restaurants."

Looking ahead, the retailer is planning more major centre openings in the coming year, with locations including East Kilbride, York and, of course, King's Lynn - the site for the first Dobbies and Tesco joint store.

"Moving into this financial year (ending March 2013) Dobbies is continuing to focus on value, improved customer choices and customer loyalty," added Mr Barnes.

"We're currently gearing up for a strong Christmas -one of our key shopping seasons - where customers traditionally enjoy spending time in our centres."