Shares dropped 44 per cent in early trading
Just days after Debenhams and Mothercare issued profit warnings, another UK retailer Carpetright has issued a post-Christmas profit warning blaming “sharp deterioration” in trade.
Following the announcement, the firm’s shares dropped 44 per cent in early trade.
Wilf Walsh, chief executive, said: “Despite a positive start to our third quarter, we have seen a significant deterioration in UK trading during the important post-Christmas trading period. While average transaction values were up year on year, the number of customer transactions since Christmas was sharply down, which we believe is indicative of reduced consumer confidence.”
Carpetright has reported a like-for-like sales decline of 3.6 per cent in the 11 weeks to 13 January – adding that transaction numbers were down “significantly” with core flooring sales down 7.1% since Christmas on the same basis.
Leave a Comment