Sales at Laura Ashley for the 26 weeks to 31st December fell from £134.7 million to £122.9 million with the drop attributed to the closure of four stores and termination of a licence agreement in Japan. In the UK like-for-like sales were down by 4.2 per cent with flagging furniture sales impacting what would have been a reasonable sales period for home accessories which were up by 1.5 per cent and fashion which was up by 11.8 per cent on a like for like basis.
The retailer launched a new digital platform earlier this year in a bid to improve its online contribution. It has also entered into a new master licence agreement for the Japanese market with Itochu Corporation and has opened new stores with franchise partners in India and Thailand.
Chairman Andrew Khoo said: “Trading conditions have been difficult during the first six months of the year to 31st December 2018. Given the continued market turbulence and having reviewed the revised management forecast for the second half-year, the board now holds the view that the performance for the entire year will fall short of market expectations.”
Share