For the 52 weeks to the end of January, Card Factory’s pre-tax profits rocketed 25.2% to £65.6million, while its revenues climbed 10.3% to £510.9million.

Like a number of businesses, Card Factory was hurt by the pandemic and had to take Government Covid and other loans to keep itself afloat. However, thanks to its strong trading, Card Factory was able to clear the last of its pandemic-era debts in January.

Clearing the last of its Covid support loans meant that it could resume dividend payments.

The company declared a 4.5p per share dividend, a payout worth £15.6million to shareholders, while will be paid at the end of June.

Chief executive Darcy Willson-Rymer said that Card Factory is now “financially and operationally a much stronger business” than it was before.

He added: “This means that we are able to both reinstate the dividend and invest in the future, while effectively navigating the ongoing economic environment. We have confidence in our strong value and quality customer proposition and remain on track for both this financial year and for achieving our 2027 targets.”