Laura Ashley profits soar as like for likes drop.

Profit before tax for the 52 weeks to 26 January increased to £19.8m from £12.2m last year helped by a pension credit of £2.3m and gains on disposals of £1.7m. Total sales rose by 5.6 per cent to £237.6m. UK retail sales were up by more than 7 per cent to £187.2m, however sales dropped 8.7 per cent on a like for like basis, or 5.9 per cent after accounting for the store-realignment programme. Tan Sri Dr. K P Khoo, Chairman, said 'We are pleased to have delivered our fifth year of continuous profit growth, despite a challenging trading environment. The improved profitability is the result of our successful store expansion and realignment programme, improved product offering and continued focus on operational efficiency. Although our like-for-like sales have declined, we do not view this as a cause for concern. Our total sales and margin rate have both seen continued improvement.