Sir Ken Morrison called time yesterday on a 55-year career spent transforming his father’s market stall into a £13 billion supermarket chain and said: “I’m going to have a rest.”

The 76-year-old Morrisons chairman was his normal understated self as annual results showed the magnitude of his achievement since leaving the Army half a century ago.

Morrisons reported pretax profit up 66 per cent to a record £612 million, a 20 per cent rise in the full-year dividend and announced a £1 billion share buyback programme. The company lifted its total dividend for the year by 20 per cent to 4.8p.

Total group sales hit £13 billion. When Sir Ken swapped his fatigues for an apron in the early 1950s his father’s business was turning over £50,000 a year.

Sir Ken, known for his endless store visits, attention to detail, thick Yorkshire accent and lucky navy blue and yellow tie, said: “We’re smiling.”

Analysts gave him a minute-long standing ovation, a stark contrast to the fierce criticism Morrisons received as it struggled to integrate Safeway, which it bought in 2004. The botched merging of the businesses led some to call for Sir Ken to quit as Morrisons was forced to issue a string of profit warnings and at one point admit it had lost control of the combined group’s finances.

Sir Ken yesterday said the Morrisons recovery in the past year showed that the group had been right to acquire Safeway and take the “huge stride” needed to close the gap on its bigger rivals.

He added that it was not impossible to imagine Morrisons one day catching and then overtaking J Sainsbury to become Britain’s third-biggest supermarket.

Sir Ken joked that, while he would still be looking over Morrisons’ stores with a critical eye, he had finally come to terms with the retirement that begins today.

He said: “I’m looking forward to following other things, not commercial but things I’ve had to sacrifice until now. I’ve got a farm that struggles to make a living but it will be intriguing to see the other side of the fence.”

Under Sir Ken, Morrisons has built its reputation around a no-frills format centred on Market Street – an instore concept highlighted by celebrities such as Lulu and Alan Hansen in the supermarket’s Christmas advertising campaign.

Sir Ken is also credited with being the first person to combine fresh vegetables and fruit along the back wall of a supermarket.

Marc Bolland, the chief executive charged with maintaining growth at the company, said: “Ken’s a unique person. The journey from a stall to a £13 billion company is a large step to make. Most people can make one or two steps; he managed the whole flight of stairs.”

At the same time Mr Bolland outlined plans for life after Sir Ken. The company intends to open eight stores in 2008 and extend 19 by adding a total of 100,000 square feet of selling space.

He said that the company was conscious of the rising costs food shoppers were having to endure.

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