Wickes profits slip but full-year guidance remains unchanged

For the 26-week period to July 2, 2022, Wickes reported adjusted profit before tax of £45.6m, down from £46.5m for the same period the previous year, and profit before tax of £33.5m.

Revenues had grown 1.3% to £822.3m against strong prior-year comparatives, while gross profits slipped 0.7% to £292.6m.

Wickes said it had seen a recent softening of the DIY market from the very high levels of demand experienced during the pandemic. 

While it said the macroeconomic environment remains uncertain, it reaffirmed its full-year profit guidance in the range of £72 to £82m.

Chief executive David Wood said: “This was a half in which we achieved record sales as customers continued to be attracted to our market-leading value, choice and availability, and I would like to thank all my colleagues for their hard work and support in delivering these results.

“While market volumes have declined, we have made further market share gains and delivered a particularly strong performance in trade, with an acceleration in the rate of sign-ups to our TradePro membership scheme.

“In DIY, we continue to cater for an increased number of younger customers who first turned to home improvement during the pandemic, while in Do It For Me delivered showroom sales have remained robust as we launched new kitchen and bathroom ranges and worked through the elevated order book. 

“As previously stated, we have seen some softening in the DIY market from the very high levels of demand experienced during the pandemic. However, we continue to outperform the wider home improvement market and our confidence in our long-term strategy is unchanged, reflected in our continued investment to drive further growth.

“Looking ahead, we remain confident that our uniquely balanced business model, coupled with our market-leading value, leaves us well-positioned within a large and growing home improvement market.”

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