Laura Ashley drops Christmas trading update
Clothing sales dip across second half
January 14 2004
Laura Ashley will not break down Christmas sales for the markets because it believes the shift in it business to home furnishing sales mean the statistics are not a good indication of its overall performance.
The company said that home furnishings now account for almost 70 per cent of its UK retail turnover. Since customers tend to buy furniture at other times, “Christmas trading statistics do not serve as a useful indication of overall trading performance.”
Laura Ashley said that in the 24 weeks to January 10, total UK like-for-like sales were down 0.6 per cent, with home furnishing like-for-likes up by 3.1 per cent and clothing like-for-likes down by 7.8 per cent.
Over the 50 weeks to January 10, total UK like-for-like were up 1.9 per cent, with home furnishings up 4.4% per cent and clothing down 2.8 per cent. The company said sales were in line with its expectation, with margins broadly the same as last year.
Ainum Mohd-Saaid, joint chief executive said: “Although the second half has been difficult, as reflected in the pressure we experienced on our top-line, I am pleased that we have managed to protect our margins through the careful control of our promotional activity, our space maximisation programme and the continued focus on costs.”
Rebecca Navarednam, joint chief executive said: “In the longer term, having effectively completed our programme to exit from Continental Europe, the group is well positioned for the future.
“However, retail markets remain difficult and both the home furnishing and fashion sectors are competitive. Although we remain cautious about the future, Laura Ashley is now in much better shape to compete and, ultimately, to deliver value to its shareholders.”
