Bonmarché full year profits on track
Women’s fashion retailer Bonmarché has said it expects its full year profits to be in line with expectations despite a drop in like-for-like sales.
In the 14 weeks to 1 April, like-for-like sales edged up 0.7% overall after store like-for-likes fell by 0.5% but online sales rose by 15.2%.
This meant that like-for-like sales for the 53 weeks ended 1 April decreased by 3.8% overall with store like-for-like sales down 4.3% and online sales up 2.2%.
Helen Connolly, chief executive of Bonmarché, said: “As anticipated, trading conditions post-Christmas continued to be challenging, but this was accounted for when we issued the revised profit guidance last September, and therefore the final result for the year is in line with our expectations. Store like-for like sales were negative in January but stronger during February and March, and we also saw the resumption of growth in online sales following improvements made to our online offering.”
The company expects pre-tax profit before exceptional items for the 53 week period ended 1 April to be slightly above the mid-point of the £5 million to £7 million range previously quoted on 21 September 2016.
Connolly added: “Whilst we expect the apparel market to remain challenging during the coming financial year, we are actively taking measures to improve our proposition to customers. We remain confident that Bonmarché remains unique in its ability to serve the needs of its target market and that the successful implementation of our plan will allow us to deliver growth in FY18, despite the challenging market.”
