Dunelm has defied the current gloom in the retail sector by reporting robust first quarter results.
Over the 13 weeks to 28 September, the homeware retailer saw its overall like-for-like sales increase 6.4% to £255.6m.
Store-only like-for-like sales rose 2.9% to £219.9m, whilst online sales jumped 34.7%.
The retailer stated that trading was particularly strong at the beginning of the period but was mixed in September due to a softer homewares market.
Nick Wilkinson, Dunelm’s Chief Executive, said: “We are pleased with our performance in the first quarter, building on the strong growth delivered over the last year. Our customers continue to respond well to our specialist product and service offering and we are excited by the numerous opportunities ahead of us.”
Looking ahead, Wilkinson highlighted that Dunelm’s new digital platform will mark an important milestone for the business when fully live, enabling it to extend its product offering and improve the customer experience.
He added: “Despite the recent softness in the homewares market and the increased political uncertainty, we are confident we can continue to win market share and our expectations for the full year remain unchanged.”
NAM Implications:
- Dunelm are obviously doing something right, especially online.
- Why not check their site, compare with their rivals…
- …and seek ways optimising any obviously advantages.
- Meanwhile, their Bricks & Mortar execution could do with some help…
