Next has announced its full price sales were up +4.4% in the six months to July 2024, and total Group sales (including subsidiaries), up +8.0%.
'From 2017 to 2024 the combination of the dramatic growth in our Online business meant NEXT's top line remained steady, the business grew profits in the period by 16% and generated enough cash to deliver a respectable 8.2% growth in EPS (after reinvestment of dividends). But the anaemic growth in top line sales masked what was, in hindsight, a major shift into a very different business,' Next reports in its results.
Photo: Next.
'This year feels like the start of a new phase in the Company's development. We anticipate delivering 9.7% growth in earnings per share, a number we have not achieved for some time. We enter this new era in a more positive frame of mind with new avenues of growth and a more stable business. Retail sales have stabilised and, though the shift to Online may not have run its course, its effects are much diminished; not least because Retail is a much smaller part of our business.'
Full price sales over the first six weeks of the second half have materially exceeded expectations, up +6.9%. Second half full price sales growth is upgraded to +3.7% versus last year (previous guidance: +2.5%). Looking forward, full year, full price sales are now expected to be up +4.0%, with total Group sales (including subsidiaries) up +6.6%.
More information:
Next
www.next.co.uk