13th Nov 2008 07:00
13 November 2008
TED BAKER PLC
("TED BAKER")
INTERIM MANAGEMENT STATEMENT
FOR THE 13 WEEK PERIOD FROM 10 AUGUST TO 8 NOVEMBER 2008
Ted Baker, the British designer brand is pleased to announce a 1.8% increase in Group revenue for the 13 week period from 10 August to 8 November 2008 (the "period"), compared to the same period last year, with gross margins in line with expectations.
Retail sales for the period were 13.3% above the same period last year and average retail square footage rose by 17.1% over the period to 180,194 sq.ft. (2007:153,901 sq.ft.). The period was affected by both unseasonably warm weather, in contrast to a period of cold weather last year and increased economic uncertainty.
During the period we opened stores in the Cabot Circus development in Bristol and in the second phase of the Liverpool One development in Liverpool City centre. We were also delighted to announce the opening of two stores in Westfield London. The second store, located in the luxury village, is our new Ted Baker Pashion store, which showcases our affordable luxury designer collections.
Wholesale sales for the period were 21.0% below the same period last year partly due to the later phasing of deliveries but also reflecting the challenging trading conditions being experienced by our customers. As previously outlined, we expect wholesale sales for the full year to be below the level achieved for 2007. However, we expect the level of reduction in wholesale sales for the second half of the year to be closer to the trend of the first half which was 12.1% below the level of the previous year.
Our product and territorial licences continue to trade in line with expectations.
Our brand is well positioned and our Autumn / Winter 2008 collections have been well received by our customers. However, the current economic difficulties must make us cautious about trading for the remainder of the financial year.
Commenting on trading, Ray Kelvin, Founder and Chief Executive, said:
"We continue to focus on high product quality, design and attention to detail and have been pleased with the overall response to the stores we opened during the period.
We remain mindful of the current economic uncertainty and will continue to manage our business carefully. We believe that the strength of the Ted Baker brand combined with our robust multi channel international distribution means we are well positioned to deal with the challenges ahead."
Enquiries:
|
Ted Baker |
Tel: 020 7255 4800 |
|
Lindsay Page, Finance Director |
|
|
Hudson Sandler |
Tel: 020 7796 4133 |
|
Michael Sandler / Kate Hough |
This information is also available on Ted Baker's Investor Relations site at www.tedbaker.com
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