LONDON (Alliance News) - Fashion retailer SuperGroup PLC on Wednesday said its pretax profit dipped in the first half due to the group booking exceptional costs which offset robust revenue growth.
The FTSE 250-listed company, which owns the Superdry clothing brands, said its pretax profit for the 26 weeks to October 24 was GBP11.5 million, down from GBP17.2 million, as it booked costs on the restructuring of its business in North America. Stripping out the exceptionals, the company said its pretax profit for the half rose to GBP19.3 million from GBP12.5 million.
Supergroup has proposed paying a 6.2 pence interim dividend, having not paid an interim nor final dividend in the previous financial year.
Revenue increased to GBP254.7 million from GBP208.2 million, with retail revenue rising 31% thanks to like-for-like sales rising 17%, compared to a 4.2% decline in like-for-likes a year earlier, while wholesale revenue rose 7.8%.
The company said it opened a net 14 new owned stores in the half, adding around 63,000 square foot of trading space over the course of the period. The group also opened 23 new international franchised and licensed stores, taking its total up to 244 stores globally.
The group is continuing to work on its womenswear range and said the launch of its premium range, a collaboration with actor Idris Elba, was a success.
"With a successful first half completed, the business is well placed for the significant peak trading period. Whilst comparatives in the second half are more challenging, the development of Superdry into a global lifestyle brand is proceeding with pace and this, together with the strength of our product offer and increasing efficiency, will enable us to deliver long-term sustainable growth," said Euan Sutherland, SuperGroup's chief executive.
By Sam Unsted; samunsted@alliancenews.com; @SamUAtAlliance
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