I’m touting UK growth stocks, which I hope will come back into favor when the economic recovery finally begins. Some had a rocky start, but I measure their success in years, not weeks.

Soda’s Law seems to dictate that whenever I buy a stock, the first thing it does is go down. That’s what happened to the DIY specialist Wicks (LSE:WIX).

I added the £411m group to my portfolio on September 13, three days after it reported a decline in interim profits. Shares held forceful on the day as management predicted a better second half. With grim inevitability, they fell 6% or 7% after they were purchased. So here goes.

I will also get dividend income

I bought Wickes shares because I felt they would benefit from Labour’s plans to augment housebuilding, along with the broader consumer recovery as the cost of living crisis fades and the Bank of England cuts interest rates.

Personally, I think Labor will fall brief of its ambitious housebuilding targets, but I still think the economy will recover.

Homeowners remain reluctant to give the green featherlight to immense projects such as up-to-date kitchens, which has hit Wickes’ design and installation department. However, with the stock trading at 11.44 times earnings and a yield of 6.29%, I think it will prove to be an excellent source of growth and income over the long term.

I love buying top growth stocks once the rush has worn off, which is why I took the plunge JD sports fashion (LSE: JD) in January. That was two weeks after FTSE100publicly traded trainer and track specialist has issued a profit warning following disappointing holiday sales.

Inevitably, after I bought them, the shares fell another 10% – the junk law kicked in again! – but now they’re flying. I’ve already raised 35%. The stock is up 5.87% over the year.

Now we need consumer recovery, both in Europe and the US. Of course this is not guaranteed. I noticed this coaching giant Nike is going through challenging times, and as a key brand for JD Sports Fashion, this could have a domino effect.

Another action for the long haul

However, at 12.69 times earnings, the JD Sports Fashion share price still looks good. With a yield of just 0.69%, I don’t expect to see an abundance of income.

A packaging industry giant listed on the FTSE 100 stock exchange Smurfit WestRock (LSE: SWR) looked solid when I bought it in June last year. And once again, its shares also fell in the days after the disclosure of a controversial merger with US peer company WestRock and a dual listing on the New York and London stock exchanges. The markets concluded that Smurfit had overpaid to complete the deal, and I was again looking at a double-digit loss. So it’s the same again.

I responded by lowering the average, and I’m glad I did. While the Smurfit WestRock share price is up just 3.97% in 12 months, I’m up 24.4%.

I think there is still value here as the stock is trading at 12.67% and we have a solid yield of 3.54%.

Once again, Smurfit WestRock needs a consumer revival to stay operational, although there is always the risk that the merger could fall through or we could see a backlash against e-commerce packaging. But I think it will prove its worth over time.