- Huw Hughes
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Matalan has reported a slight increase in revenues for the third quarter
of the year and across the festive shopping period.
For the 13 weeks to 30 November, the British fashion and homeware
retailer saw revenue increase 1.1 percent to 311.7 million pounds from
308.3 million pounds in the same period a year prior.
During the peak festive shopping period to 4 January 2020, total revenue
was 134.3 million pounds compared to 133.5 million pounds in the same
period the year before. Online sales grew 25 percent, while the company
said Boxing Day Sale entry volume was in line with last year.
EBITDA post adoption of IFRS16 was 59 million pounds, while restated
EBITDA under IAS 17 fell 6.3 million pounds to 33.7 million pounds.
Matalan ‘remaining cautious in a tough market’
Commenting on performance in a statement, Matalan CEO Jason Hargreaves,
said: “The challenges faced by ourselves and the wider market have been
well documented and our results released today continue to reflect that
backdrop. Consumer confidence and spending remained depressed in the midst
of unprecedented levels of political uncertainty throughout the
autumn/winter season.
“Following an extremely poor market in September, described by the BRC
as the worst on record, the actions taken to further strengthen our
proposition are starting to positively impact. The scale of margin
investment required to manage stocks and trade effectively is reducing and
I am confident this progress will continue as there will not be any
material stock hangover.
Hargreaves added that amid an ever-changing retail landscape, the business
needs to “evolve and to be agile, efficient and deeply connected to” its
customers. He said: “We are giving customers a better all round experience,
providing additional product choice, fantastic new and refurbished store
space, and a further improved online journey. Our online business is
growing at a rate of 25 percent. Alongside this we will continue to benefit
from our investments in driving operational efficiency and improving our
stock management capabilities. Therefore, despite remaining cautious in a
tough market, I’m confident that with the support of our colleagues we will
have a stronger 2020.”
Photo credit: Matalan, Facebook
