17th May 2007 10:30
Intimas Group PLC17 May 2007 Intimas Group plc AGM Statement Intimas Group plc ("Intimas" or "the Group") is a designer and supplier ofladies' intimate apparel, with a portfolio of brands comprising Lepel, Ted BakerIntimates, Discover Mademoiselle and Charnos Lingerie At today's Annual General Meeting, Michael Hobbs, Chairman, will say: "At the time of our Preliminary Announcement in March of the results for theyear ended 31 December 2006, I referred to a number of factors which wereadversely impinging on our first half performance, specifically the loss ofbusiness from Contessa, a significant reduction in our private label swimwearbusiness, a worsening in some supplier trading terms and a weakening in thegeneral retail sector. At that time we anticipated those factors causing aslight drop in first half performance, but we also anticipated a stronger end tothe year, giving an overall improvement in the Group's underlying performance. "It is now clear that the first half performance will be worse than expected dueto the factors listed above, compounded by a worse than expected performance inthe general retail environment. We have seen our Spring/Summer seasonperformance affected by a reduction in the level of anticipated repeat orders onbranded merchandise and, in particular, on the Charnos brand. Our private labelbusiness continues to perform ahead of expectations, but not sufficiently tooffset the impact of the downturn in branded sales. "We remain confident that the Charnos brand has a strong future and, havingaddressed certain management weaknesses, are more confident of some improvementin performance for the forthcoming Autumn/Winter season and, in particular, theSpring/Summer season of 2008. "Whilst disappointed by our first half performance, we believe that the ongoingturnaround in the performance of the Group is still on track. At this stage theAutumn/Winter order book is looking strong and we expect the second halfperformance from both our branded and private label businesses to be ahead ofthe second half of last year. "In the AGM statement last year, I indicated that my initial impression was thatthere is a tremendous opportunity for consolidation and growth in the market foran ambitious group like ours. That impression has not changed and the seniormanagement changes made over the last six months have only reinforced thisbelief. We now have in place the management team behind Carol Duncumb, ourChief Executive, to drive the business forward and to exploit this opportunity.This new team has inevitably made some healthy challenges to the current plansfor the business and they are already helping to refine and develop improvementsto the future prospects for the business. I look forward to updating you on ourprogress later in the year." 17 May 2007 ENQUIRIES: Intimas Group plc Tel: 0115 983 6000Michael Hobbs, ChairmanCarol Duncumb, Chief Executive College Hill Tel: 020 7457 2020Gareth David KBC Peel Hunt Tel: 020 7418 8900 Matt Goode This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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