UK fashion retailer French Connection has recorded another massive loss – which overshadowed a milestone improvement in underlying profit.
For the full year to January 31, the company’s operating loss almost tripled, from £3.8 million (US$4.97 million) the previous year to £9.3 million ($12.2 million). However for the first time in seven years, French Connection’s achieved an underlying profit, a somewhat modest £100,000 which was a stark contrast to the previous year’s £2.1 million loss.
In what the company described as a “tough” trading environment, sales fell 10.6 per cent overall, or by 6.8 percent on a like-for-like basis, to £58.4 million. While figures were not released for the brand’s Hong Kong sales, the company said shipments to its partners there and in Australia reduced during the year.
The company is continuing to close stores. During the last five years it has reduced its store count by more than half, and currently has 96 standalone stores and 195 franchised and licensed stores worldwide. Nine more are slated for closure this year. However, wholesale sales rose 10.3 per cent to £76.9 million in the UK, Europe and North America, which drove group revenue up by 0.2 per cent year on year to £135.3 million.
