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Results round-up: How high street retailers performed in the Golden Quarter

Sophie Smith
24 January 2025

A raft of major high street firms, including Primark, Marks & Spencer, JD Sports and NEXT, have recently released their trading updates for Christmas and the all-important golden quarter. 

The figures shed light on how consumer spending held up this Christmas, with some signs of resilience, despite many businesses warning of price hikes amid soaring costs linked to the Autumn Budget in April.

TheIndustry.fashion takes a look at who the festive success stories are so far, and which high street retailers have appeared more downbeat.

Next

NEXT

NEXT was among the first retailers to provide a Christmas update and impressed the markets after lifting its profit guidance due to higher sales.

The business, which runs hundreds of UK stores, revealed a better-than-expected 5.7% rise in full-price sales for its fourth quarter so far. As a result, it said profits are expected to rise by around 10% for the year.

However, the UK-based company suggested that sales growth could slow in the new financial year amid pressure on household finances.

It was also among high street firms to warn that its prices would rise in 2025 due to the impact of recent Budget measures, with CEO Lord Simon Wolfson emphasising that the tax changes and national insurance hikes could make it "harder and harder for people to enter the workforce"

NEXT's wage bill is set to rise by £70 million, and Lord Wolfson explained this would lead to a cut in the number of employee hours worked – either through fewer workers or fewer hours per employee.

Read the full article here.

Marks & Spencer

Marks & Spencer saw growth over the Christmas period, with sales up 5.6% in the 13 weeks to 28 December, boosted by a "strong" performance in food and a more modest uptick across fashion, beauty and home.

The department store achieved £4.06 billion in sales, with CEO Stuart Machin saying there is opportunity for further growth in home and beauty while its resurgent fashion division had taken further market share.

Machin described the performance a "another good Christmas for Marks & Spencer", but cautioned on challenging market conditions ahead.

He warned that the economic picture "remained uncertain" for the coming year, taking the shine off its bumper sales growth. The retailer vowed to pass on "as little as possible" amid speculation that a £120 million jump in costs following the Autumn Budget could impact prices for customers.

"What people forget is you’re constantly doing a three-year plan, and when you get these surprises… you have to rework your plan all over again," added Machin, following the trading update earlier this month.

Read the full article here.

JD Sports

JD Sports Fashion lowered its profit outlook for the year after flagging a challenging fashion market that saw rivals push through heavy discounting in the run-up to Christmas. It said sales in November and December were 1.5% lower than the same period a year earlier.

As a result of the challenging trading environment, JD Sports said it has entered the new year with a "cautious" view, and now anticipates profit before tax and adjusting items to fall between £915 million and 935 million, down from its earlier forecast of £955 million and £1.03 billion.

Despite this, the sportswear giant reported a "stronger" Christmas with revenue up 1.5% in December alone. It also achieved record Black Friday week sales of over £300 million, with sales up 14%.

Footwear sales increased and outperformed apparel, with "strong" revenue from its sporting goods and outdoor segments.

Meanwhile, revenue growth in Europe and Asia Pacific partially offset weaker trading across the UK and North America. Stores also outperformed online sales during the nine weeks to 4 January 2025.

Read the full article here.

Primark

Primark cut its sales forecasts after the high street chain’s UK stores were knocked by "cautious" shoppers and unfavourable weather.

It came as parent firm Associated British Foods (ABF) revealed a slump in sales in the UK amid continued pressure on household budgets.

It is targeting "low single-digit" sales growth for the brand in 2025. In November, the company had said it expected "mid single-digit growth".

Primark said sales in the UK and Ireland declined by 4%, with a like-for-like drop of 6%. Growth over Christmas was dragged back by "weaker autumn trading in a challenging retail environment" across the UK.

Demand from some shoppers was "weak as a result of cautious consumer sentiment" while mild weather impacted sales of items such as coats and jackets over October and November. Primark's weakness in the UK was partly offset by gains in Spain, Portugal, France, Italy and the US.

Read the full article here.

Poundland

Poundland 

Pepco Group noted a challenging trading environment at Poundland during the first quarter ending 31 December, driven by a weak clothing and general merchandise performance and tough market conditions.

The company delivered revenues of €1.9 billion (£1.6 billion), down 1.1%, with a "positive" performance at Pepco and Dealz offset by continued challenges at Poundland during the festive period.

Pepco Group noted continued challenges for Poundland, amid a more difficult sales environment and consumer backdrop in the UK, alongside margin pressure and an increasingly higher operating cost environment.

The value retailer saw revenues decline 7.3% and reported a net closure of 11 shops, primarily reflecting lease expirations on larger stores. It will not open any net new stores during the remaining quarters.

Pepco Group is continuing a "comprehensive assessment" of Poundland to recover trading and get the business back to its core strengths, including a thorough assessment of all costs across the business, as well as evaluating its overall competitive positioning.

Read the full article here.

Quiz

Womenswear chain Quiz exited the stock market this week as it scrambles to secure its future, following reports it could close stores.

The company, which runs 62 stores and 47 concessions across the UK, de-listed from London’s junior AIM stock market on Thursday morning. Shortly before Christmas, the retail firm said it planned to de-list from the stock market in a bid to cut its costs.

Quiz, which employs 1,500 people, said sales had been "disappointing" in the Christmas trading period and that its cash reserves are "less than previously anticipated".

It said the poor trading was partly because of the "impact of inflationary pressures on consumer confidence and spending".

The company hired advisers to look at ways it could free up cash or secure more funding in order to help secure its future.

Read the full article here.

seasalt revenue 100 million copy

Seasalt

Cornish clothing brand Seasalt delivered a 10% rise in sales for the five weeks ending 28 December 2024, with every channel setting new records.

Online sales were strong during the festive period, up 6% against the previous year and reflecting another "record-breaking" result.

Meanwhile, stores enjoyed a third consecutive Christmas of record sales, with revenues up 3%. Seasalt said this is particularly noteworthy "in light of recent decreases in high street footfall reported across the country".

The brand also strengthened its relationships with marketplace partners in the UK and internationally, including M&S, NEXT, and Nordstrom, with sales up 46%. It said these partners form a core part of Seasalt's international expansion strategy, which drove "impressive" performance with international markets representing 10% of sales during the period.

Looking ahead, Seasalt expects to achieve another year of double-digit revenue growth for the year ending 1 February 2025.

Read the full article here.

Sosandar

Womenswear brand Sosandar reported revenues of £12.2 million for the three months to 31 December, with an increase in margins and net cash of £8.2 million allowing the group to "self-fund planned store roll out".

It four existing stores all performed well over the period, with "strong footfall and conversion and a demonstrable uplift in traffic" to the brand's website in the geographical areas where the stores have opened.

Adding to its existing stores in Cardiff, Gateshead, Marlow, Buckinghamshire, and Chelmsford in Essex, Sosandar also recently signed lease agreements for new stores in Bath and Harrogate.

In the lead up to Christmas, the company saw "strong" sales of partywear, as well as increased demand for core categories of knitwear and denim. Trading with its third-party partners also continued to be strong.

Looking ahead, Sosandar expects revenues for the full-year ending 31 March 2025 to hit £40.5 million with profit before tax of £1 million.

Read the full article here.


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