Burberry bags a bumper year for profits

Fashion house Burberry finished a stellar year in style yesterday as bumper sales of leather bags and accessories drove a surge in annual profits.

The 155-year-old British maker of raincoats and handbags said sales of non-apparel goods, such as handbags, jewellery and shoes, grew 35 per cent in the year to 31 March.

The luxury clothing firm, famous for its red, black and camel check, said its focus on non-apparel paid off as the sector accounted for nearly half the group's sales growth.

Burberry reported a 39 per cent increase in underlying pre-tax profits to 298 million, after a 27 per cent increase in revenues to 1.5 billion.

Chief executive Angela Ahrendts pledged to keep up the group's expansion. "While mindful of global macro challenges in the current year, we will continue to invest to drive growth across our portfolio by channel, region and product," she told investors.

Kate Calvert, retail analyst at Seymour Pierce, said the firm operated in a market place with strong long-term growth opportunities. She added: "We expect it to deliver continued outperformance relative to its peers."