Topps Tiles sales soar in ‘record’ year

The flooring specialist posted group sales of £263m for the 52 weeks to September 30, 2023, up 6.4% year on year, marking the retailer’s third consecutive year of “record turnover” for the business.

Topps Tiles attributed its year-on-year sales increase to a “significant outperformance relative to the UK tiling market”.

The retailer said it anticipates a “strong increase” in its market share for the full year, up from the 19% reported last year.

In the 13 weeks to September 30, Topps Tiles also reported a 3.2% increase in group sales for the quarter.

The business said the slowdown in sales growth during the final quarter was “as expected” due to “the impact on residential repair, maintenance and improvement (RMI) spend of the prolonged period of inflation, higher interest rates and the slowing housing market”.

Despite this, the retailer said it expects adjusted profit before tax for the full year to be “in line with market expectations”.

Chief executive Rob Parker said: “As we celebrate our 60th anniversary, we are delighted to have delivered a third consecutive year of record sales in Topps Group, having increased our sales by over £40m since the pre-pandemic period, reflecting the significant development and diversification of the group over that time.

“It was also a year of strong strategic progress, in which Topps Tiles continued to take significant market share, Parkside was set up for profitable growth and Pro Tiler’s performance went from strength to strength.  As a result of this progress, we anticipate delivering our goal of ‘1 in 5 by 2025’ significantly ahead of schedule.

“Despite a slowing RMI market, we are confident that our core strengths of leading brands, world-class customer service, specialist expertise and a strong balance sheet will enable us to grow sales, profitability and cash generation in the years ahead, delivering value for all stakeholders.”