06/06/2012

Halfords 'Very Disappointed' At Fall In Sales

Bicycle and car parts retailer Halfords have described their last two months of sales as “very disappointing”, as it reported a steep decline in profit for the year to end of March, in line with estimates.

"Retail sales in the financial year 2013 have been very disappointing so far. In particular we have not seen the usual seasonal demand for cycling and outdoor leisure products," the company said on Thursday.

"We believe some of these sales are deferred rather than cancelled, and we expect a stronger performance from these categories as the year progresses."

The wettest April on record has affected sales across the high street, exacerbating an already tough situation as British shoppers cut back on spending due to muted wages growth and government austerity measures.

Full-year underlying profit at Halfords for the year to the end of March fell 27% to £92.2m, in line with estimates, according to Thomson Reuters. Sales were down about 1% at £863m.

(H)


Related UK National News Stories
Click here for the latest headlines.

21 February 2014
ONS Figures Show Year-On-Year Increase In Retail Sales
New figures from the Office for National Statistics have revealed a 1.5% drop in retail sales in January, down from a pre-Christmas boost of 2.5% but still 4.4% up on January 2013. Comparing year-on-year figures for January there was an 8% increase in non-food sales, with sales of household good increasing by 9.
16 June 2005
ONS reports retail sales ‘restrained’
The latest three-monthly growth in retail sales volume was the highest since November 2004, the Office of National Statistics has reported. However, the report warned that the underlying trend appeared “restrained” and annual growth in sales volume fell to the lowest level for six years.
04 October 2012
Halfords Reports 'Summer Of Sport' Sales Hike
Halfords has reported a sales boost attributed to success in the Tour de France and Olympic cycling. Like-for-like bike sales excluding new stores soared by 14.7% in the three months to 28 September, and by 5.6% in the quarter, following a 5.6% fall in sales the previous quarter.
14 August 2013
Scottish Sales 'Outpace UK Sales' In July
The latest SRC-KPMG Scottish Retail Sales Monitor has revealed that Scottish sales outpaced its UK counterpart for the month of July. It is thought Andy Murray's triumph at Wimbledon, as well as the sustained period of hot weather combined to give Scotland's high streets their best performance for two years.
07 May 2015
Michelin Acquires Tyre Sales Company For £50m
Michelin Tyres has purchased tyre sales company Blackcircles.com for £50 million. The Edinburgh firm generated a revenue of £28 million in 2013 and has experienced an annual growth of around 20% per annum since 2008. Michael Welch, founder of Blackcircles.