Mamas & Papas confident on UK retail Mamas & Papas, the maternity and baby products chain, said it will return to profit this year as it expands in the UK and overseas. The Huddersfield-based company, founded and owned by Luisa and David Scacchetti, lost £1.6m on sales of £135m, up 7pc, last year, accounts just filed show. Tim Maule, deputy chief executive, said the company absorbed rising raw material and shipping costs rather than increase its retail prices, resulting in the loss, which compares with a £4.7m pre-tax profit in 2010. He said Mamas & Papas would return to profit this year as it continued to expand. It wil add six new stores to its chain of 62 in the UK this year, building on the eight added since April last year. A further 20 will be opened this year around the world as part of plans to enter 10 new markets by 2013. We have a fundamental improvement in the UK. We are not relying on our overseas markets to prop up the UK. We are about to take the best of the UK and expand that overseas," he said. The company paid no dividend to its shareholders in the year to April 3.