Mulberry swings to full year loss
Mulberry made a loss of £5 million in the year to 30 March. This compares to a pre-tax profit of £6.9 million in the prior year.
During the period revenue edged down to £166.3 million from a previous £169.7 million, although international sales rose by 7%. Meanwhile, UK sales fell by 6%.
The luxury brand said the results were in line with expectations. The UK decline was partly a result of the impact of House of Fraser entering administration in August. However, the company was able to recover a significant proportion of the lost revenue after it transferred its wholesale business with John Lewis to retail concessions.
During the period, Mulberry established new business entities in Japan and South Korea as part of its overseas growth plans.
Thierry Andretta, Mulberry chief executive, said: “The group has delivered results in line with expectations and is making good progress in advancing its International strategy and direct to customer model whilst managing a challenging UK market.
“We have established new subsidiaries in Japan and South Korea and introduced important digital partnerships in China. International and omnichannel sales, driven by our customer centric focus, are increasing as a result.”
Mulberry also introduced a new store concept in the year with the opening of a store on London’s Regent Street. The design was a collaboration between architect Faye Toogood and Johnny Coca, Mulberry’s creative director. The concept was also applied to new stores in New York and Dubai.
The company has also given an update on current trading. Retail sales were up 13% in the 11 weeks to 15 June. This included a 31% rise in international sales and a 7% uplift in the UK. During the same period, online sales increased 53%.
Looking ahead, Andretta said: “We anticipate that international and digital sales will continue to grow whilst UK retail trading conditions are expected to remain uncertain. The group plans to invest further in its new Asian entities during this development phase, enhance its global digital platform and optimise the UK network.”
