Homestyle regroups after challenging first half
Restructured furniture group ‘confident of progress’
Furniture group Homestyle is looking to a stronger performance in the second half after a major restructuring of the business this year.
Following the management buyout of the Rosebys textiles business earlier this year, Homestyle chairman David Brock, told shareholders at the company’s annual meeting: “The first half of the year has been a very challenging period for the company.
We have undergone a significant level of management change and undertaken a fundamental financial review which has resulted in the group restructuring its balance sheet and refinancing its debt.
“However, we now believe that the business is properly focused to carry out its commercial strategy.”
In a ‘highly competitive’ market, Homestyle’s total sales for its continuing businesses up by 12.3 per cent in the 24 weeks to October 16.
Within this increase, the group’s bed division has continued to perform strongly, while the furniture division “is beginning to make progress despite its withdrawal from textiles and the transfer of Harveys Bed business to the bed division”.
Brock said: “The board has taken a number of significant decisions in the first half of this year with the aim of providing a stable platform to recover shareholder value.
“As a result, we have been able to strengthen the balance sheet, stabilise performance at the furniture division with the beds division continuing to trade strongly. Overall, we are confident of making progress in the second half as we complete our plans for the longer-term recovery of the furniture division.”
