Jewellery group Signet, which owns H Samuel and Ernest Jones, UK operating profit dipped 1.6% to $56.1m (£34.5m) in its full year to January 29.
UK like-for-likes edged up 0.9% for the year, however the jeweller said they dropped 3.1% in February.
In its full year, total sales nudged up 3.2% to $715.1m (£452.3m) in the UK, which accounts for 19.1% of the jewellery giant’s sales.
Across the anglo-American group, profit was up 67.1% to $502.1m (£317.5m).
In the UK, Ernest Jones like-for-likes were flat while H Samuel’s rose 1.6%. Branded jewellery, fashion watches and the bridal category drove sales in the chains.
The jeweller said that “compelling merchandising initiatives” and price increases meant that the group sold lower volumes of higher priced merchandise in the UK.
Signet chief executive Mike Barnes said: “Our long term competitive strengths continued to drive the superior performance achieved during the year.
“Creating an outstanding customer experience, the strength of our merchandise, our continued advertising investment in support of our store concepts and merchandise brands all work together to effectively support our customers’ jewellery purchases.”
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