Card Factory boosted by shoppers returning to high street
Card Factory has seen its half year revenue increase by 69.4% to £198 million following a “shift of customer spend back towards the high street and reversal of lockdown effects”.
In the six months to 31 July, the greeting cards retailer posted a pre-tax profit of £14.3 million compared to a loss of £6.5 million at the same time in the prior year.
Online sales at Cardfactory.co.uk were down year-on-year as customers returned to the high street following the pandemic. However, this led store revenue to grow by 81.8%.
Darcy Willson-Rymer, Card Factory chief executive, said: “We are pleased to report a strong performance through the half which reflects continued good momentum within the business, as well as the reversal of lockdown trends with customers choosing to return to the high street.
“The pronounced shift in spend back towards stores supports our continued conviction in the value of our store estate within our customer proposition and as an enabler in our omnichannel ambitions.”
During the period, the retailer opened six new stores in Ireland and a first small format trial store in central London. It is currently making final preparations for the launch of a trial click & collect service in 84 shops.
Looking ahead, Card Factory said it will manage inflationary pressures through a combination of targeted price increases and efficiency measures.
Willson-Rymer added: “Despite these ongoing challenges, we remain confident that our customers will continue to want to celebrate life’s moments and that value for money is increasingly important to them.
“Card Factory offers great value for money across a range of products and price points, and our experience so far this year confirms how well this resonates with consumers.”
