Moss Bros' sales boost driven by ecommerce

Moss Bros said total sales in the first 15 weeks of its financial year rose 1.5% year on year and like-for-likes edged down 0.2%.

Like-for-like retail sales, including ecommerce, were up 2.2%, “reflecting a strong ecommerce performance alongside positive momentum in high street stores”.

Ecommerce sales rose 18.7% on last year to account for 15.5% of total revenues versus 13% a year ago.

However, like-for-like hire sales on a ‘cash taken’ basis slid 15.6%.

Moss Bros chief executive Brian Brick said the business expects to meet full-year expectations.

He said: “We are making progress on last year, having recovered from the stock issues and improved our supply chain. Retail and ecommerce sales have shown further improvement against this backdrop.

“Although Hire continues to disappoint, it is clear this is reflecting a switch from Hire to retail with the new Tailor Me range.

“We are building momentum in new channels to market and we are seeing a growth in new customers as a result. Tailor Me continues to gather momentum and is showing 32% growth in order value versus last year.

“We are focused on the peak phase of our trading year, encompassing wedding season, prom and Ascot. The wider trading environment remains both highly competitive and price-sensitive, but we are well placed with our strong core offer and levels of stock availability.”