* H1 sales jump but still down sharply vs 2019
* 'Reasonably cautious' about outlook - CEO
* Ted Baker shares rise 5.3%
(Adds detail, background, quotes)
By Sachin Ravikumar
Nov 11 (Reuters) - British fashion chain Ted Baker
said on Thursday sales were rebounding as office and party wear
become popular again after the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions,
but signalled that the pace of recovery was still uncertain.
Ted Baker and other apparel retailers are navigating a bumpy
road back to normal as demand for office and party wear grows
again, but anaemic levels of tourism in places such as London
had hurt store footfall.
"We are optimistic but we're also being reasonably cautious
on outlook in the next quarter and the next year," Chief
Executive Rachel Osborne said in an interview. "For us, a full
return to international tourism would really help the bounce
back."
Ted Baker, which has 377 stores and concessions with
three-quarters of those located in the United Kingdom, Europe
and North America, said demand for formal wear, suiting and
occasion wear pushed group revenue up 18% year-over-year in the
28 weeks to Aug. 14. Loss before tax narrowed to 25.3 million
pounds ($34.2 million) from 86.4 million a year earlier.
The rising number of COVID-19 vaccinations in Europe and
North America has encouraged many workers back to return to
their offices, with Ted Baker's revenue from North America
jumping by a third. Customers looking ahead to parties and the
Christmas season were also helping, Osborne said.
Shares in the upmarket retailer were up 5.3% at 143.9 pence
by 0905 GMT.
Group revenues were, however, still down 36% compared to
pre-pandemic levels in 2019, suggesting a longer road to
recovery.
"Within our store portfolio there have been clear changes in
footfall patterns and there is uncertainty over the timing and
degree of the return to previous patterns," Osborne said in a
statement.
The upmarket retailer is now half-way through a three-year
turnaround that was launched by Osborne and is focused on cost
cuts and boosting its online presence and product range.
It has also been working to repair its image after former
boss Ray Kelvin left in 2019 following misconduct allegations.
Kelvin, who started the company in 1988 in Glasgow in Scotland,
has denied the allegations.
Ted Baker did not provide annual financial forecasts but
said it was "comfortable" with current analyst expectations for
the financial year.
Third-quarter group revenue - for the 12 weeks to Nov. 6 -
also jumped by 18%, the company said.
($1 = 0.7389 pounds)
(Reporting by Sachin Ravikumar in Bengaluru; Editing by
Ramakrishnan M., Editing by Timothy Heritage)
