Department store group Fenwick has reported a return to profit, Retail Week can reveal.
The sale earlier this year of its Bond Street store has provided funds to invest in further transformation.
The £430m sale of the Bond Street store enabled Fenwick to report pre-tax profits of £57.1m last year, compared to a loss of £5.2m a year earlier, accounts being filed at Companies House show.
The retailer’s gross sales climbed 31% to £315m in the year to January 28, 2023, as shoppers returned to stores, while online sales rose 51%.
Fenwick chief executive John Edgar told Retail Week the retailer is well positioned to push ahead with its transformation strategy including enhancing customers’ experience in-store and investing in digital, where insufficient attention had been focused in the past.
He said: “Last year was one of the most important in the history of Fenwick. [The Bond Street disposal] has allowed us to continue our transformation on an even more sound footing.
“It’s allowed us to step up investment in all our stores, particularly Newcastle, and invest in digital, which is the growth driver.”
The Newcastle flagship is in the midst of a phased transformation taking in everything from new atriums to product assortment. Digital improvements include the launch of a new website and a consolidated supply chain.
Edgar said trading in the current financial year had been “up and down”, in large part because of unhelpful weather. However, the retailer benefited from a focus on full-price sales. That, and a better inventory position, mean Fenwick is not holding a mid-season Sale this year – it would typically have been running now.
Edgar said he was optimistic about prospects for Christmas. “I have a good feeling about it,” he said, as the shocks such as Covid-19 recede and the cost of living moderates.
He added that there were no plans to dispose of any more stores. “I’d actually like to add one or two in the right places,” he said.
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