Wickes shares plunge as wet weather dampens outdoor retail sales

(Alliance News) - Wickes Group PLC on Tuesday said it was "comfortable" with full-year market forecasts despite the wet weather impacting sales at the start of 2026.

The Watford, England-based home improvement retailer said group revenue rose 1.3% to GBP537 million in the 17 weeks to April 25 from the year before, but fell 0.1% like-for-like.

Design & Installation sales grew 6.4%, or 4.3% LFL, to GBP145 million, offset by a 0.4% drop in Retail revenue, or 1.7% LFL, to GBP392 million.

Retail suffered as market demand for outdoor projects was "significantly impacted by exceptional rainfall", compared to more favourable conditions last year, Wickes said.

Shares in Wickes fell 11% to 180.24 pence in London on Tuesday morning.

On a two-year basis, Retail revenue increased by 8.9%, the firm added.

Sales from indoor projects remained in growth during the period, around eight percentage points ahead of outdoor categories.

Within Retail, TradePro continued to perform "well", with sales up 4% year-on-year.

In Design & Installation, sales rose for the fourth quarter in a row.

Wickes is pressing ahead with its new store rollout strategy, with an ambition to reach 300 stores.

"We are in the process of securing our future property pipeline, having already identified the optimal locations," it said.

For 2026, Wickes expect to open 4 to 5 new stores and to refit or refresh 15 to 20 stores.

For 2026, Wickes said it remains "comfortable" with consensus expectations for adjusted pretax profit of GBP57.1 million which would be up from GBP49.9 million in 2025.

"Whilst the market environment remains uncertain, our value-led business model leaves us well-positioned and we expect Retail sales to return to growth," the firm added.

By Jeremy Cutler, Alliance News reporter

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