Findel-owned mail order business Express Gifts
recorded its strongest Christmas for four years. The gifts
catalogue recorded an 11.1 per cent sales growth in the 15 weeks
to 17th January compared with the same period the previous
year.
As sister company Kitbag, sales since the
half-year were 2 per cent ahead of last year, though margins
suffered due to a more aggressive promotional strategy. At
Kleeneze, sales declined 1.2 per cent in the 15
weeks. Findel also operates a healthcare division, which saw
sales for the period since the half-year 12.1 per cent ahead of
2010/11, though again, growth came at the expense of margins.
Overall, group sales are 1.6 per cent ahead of the previous
year.
For Scottish retailers, 2011 was the worst Christmas ever. Total
sales in December were up 1.6 per cent on December 2010. And
although this was the best performance since July, it’s the worst
December growth since the survey began in 1999. Commenting on the
results, David McCorquodale, head of retail in Scotland at KPMG,
made this gloomy statement, “Christmas this year came at a
real cost to retailers as the discounting was deep, impacting
margins, and opening hours were longer, costing more in wages.
Several retailers have not made it into the New Year and more
shop closures are anticipated in the coming months.”
Outdoor apparel retailer Peak Performance
appointed Henrik Bunge, the current managing director of Adidas
Group, Nordic, as its chief executive officer. In related news,
Tobias Sachs rejoins the business as sales director having
previously held sales roles at Peak Performance from 2002 to
2008.
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