Laura Ashley defies high street gloom

New furniture and clothing ranges have paid off for Laura Ashley after the retailer defied high street gloom with higher sales and profits.

The group, which has 214 stores across the UK and Ireland, lifted like-for-like sales by 3.5 per cent in the six months to 30 July, figures yesterday revealed, with all product areas except home accessories seeing healthy sales gains. It said the improvement had continued at around the same rate in the second half of the year.

Furniture sales rose by 5.8 per cent on a same-store basis in the first half after the chain introduced more contemporary styles and products such as its first corner unit.

Clothing sales were up by more than 5 per cent on the same basis after four new styles were introduced, while an increase in the number of its own in-house interior designers boosted decorating revenues. Underlying profits rose by 28 per cent to £7.3 million as margins also got a lift from improved sourcing. Three stores were also closed over the period which kept total sales flat at £135.3m.

Sean Anglim, Laura Ashley’s chief financial officer, said a strong product range and positive customer feedback gave the group confidence for the rest of the year, even though the retail backdrop remains difficult.