Joules has posted a pre-tax loss of £2 million for the 53 weeks to May 31st, citing not just the Covid-19 lockdown but problems with stock availability during the Christmas trading period. Group revenues came in at £190.8 million, a fall of 12.5 per cent year on year, however, online sales grew by 11 per cent to represent close to 57 per cent of all sales.
The retailer, which has a strong following amongst country-dwellers, said that it would be reviewing its 128 strong store portfolio with around 35 per cent coming up for lease renewal in the next eighteen months.
CEO Nick Jones said of the year: “We were quick to bolster our liquidity position, preserve cash and focus our trading online, and we are very encouraged by the more than 70 per cent growth in eCommerce demand and the performance of our stores since re-opening.”
He added: “We have further strengthened our flexible ‘Total Retail’ model, enhanced our UK and US supply chain operations to support our growth plans, and launched Friends of Joules, an exciting new digital marketplace.”
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