7th Sep 2023 10:00
(Alliance News) - Currys PLC on Thursday left its guidance for the year unchanged, despite reporting a dip in sales.
The London-based electronics and electrical goods retailer issued a trading update for the 17 weeks ended August 26, ahead of its annual general meeting later Thursday.
Currys said that UK & Ireland like-for-like revenue in the period was down 2% annually.
It noted that revenue trends were better in July & August than May & June. The company added that there were robust sales in domestic appliances and mobile, offset by weakness in other categories, especially computing.
Like-for-like revenue in the Nordic area was down 8%. "Nordics revenue trends have improved slightly throughout period, although trading environment remains challenging," Currys said.
It added that it has taken actions to deliver cost saving targets in the region. This includes central headcount reduction; offshoring & contractor removal; IT procurement synergies; store lease & operating cost reductions; marketing expense rationalisation; and goods-not-for-resale supplier consolidation.
The Nordic region has been an issue for Currys more recently. In July, Chief Executive Alex Baldock said: "In the Nordics, the markets we operate across have been experiencing a painful period with softer demand coupled with cost of goods sold inflation, exacerbated by excess stock and some competitions pursuing strategies focussed on growth at expense of profit or cashflow."
More positively, like-for-like revenue in Greece was up 3%, despite the short term impact from wildfires on customer footfall during August.
"The strategic review of the Kotsovolos business is progressing in line with plan, a fuller update will be given in due course," Currys said.
Overall, like-for-like sales across the group were down 4% in the 17 week period.
Chief Executive Alex Baldock said: "Our priorities this year are simple: to keep the UK&I's encouraging momentum going, and to get the Nordics back on track. We're making good progress on both, in what continues to be a challenging economic environment. We remain confident that we're building a stronger business that's resilient today and fit to prosper in the longer term."
Shares in Currys were up 0.8% to 49.26 pence each in London on Thursday morning.
By Sophie Rose, Alliance News reporter
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