Watches of Switzerland full year sales rise ahead of guidance
Watches of Switzerland saw its group revenue increase ahead of guidance by 5.9% to £819.3 million in the year to 26 April.
The owner of the Watches of Switzerand, Mappin & Webb, Goldsmiths and Mayors retail brands said it experienced particularly strong trading pre-lockdown during the first 46 weeks to 15 March with UK and US sales rising by 9.4% and 36.4% respectively. This was driven by a 19.3% increase in sales of luxury watches. Meanwhile like-for-like sales in the period were up 9.3%.
Across the full 52-week period, UK sales edged up 0.6% to £591.6 million while US sales rose by 22.9% to £227.7 million.
Watches of Switzerland said the final six weeks of the year were significantly impacted by the covid-19 outbreak due to store closures in both the UK and US, although its ecommerce channels performed well with a 45.8% uplift in sales.
The group expects its full year adjusted pre-IFRS 16 EBITDA to come in at between £75 million and £78 million.
Brian Duffy, Watches of Switzerland chief executive, said: “Prior to the covid-19 pandemic, the group had been on track to deliver double-digit sales growth, reflecting our strong brand partnerships, favourable market conditions and accelerating momentum in the US.
“Despite the current challenges, demand for luxury watches has remained strong with online sales performance ahead of our expectations. Through our longstanding partnerships with the most prestigious Swiss watch brands, we have further enhanced the online customer experience with the introduction of additional brands which we had previously only transacted in our stores.”
Photo by Georgia Hawkins.
