Debenhams toughs it out
Like-for-like sales fall 0.9 per cent
Gross transaction value for the year to 30 August 2008 was 1.3% higher than the previous year. Like-for-like sales were down by 0.9% for the year. Rob Templeman, Chief Executive said ‘Debenhams ongoing investment in product design, quality and value, plus the differentiation of our exclusive designer ranges, has resulted in market share gains both overall and for each major clothing category and enabled us to deliver what we believe to be a creditable sales performance given the retail climate.’Trading in August showed a marked improvement over July but the UK retail sector continues to be adversely affected by wider economic concerns. We will continue to focus on meeting the needs of our customers to enable us to make further market share gains in what continues to be a challenging macroeconomic environment.’
