Sweet sales, sour stores for Thorntons
Thorntons has posted a 7.4 per cent growth in total sales for the 14 weeks to 2 October 2010. However, it has identified poor performance in own-brand stores as an area for improvement.
The company, which was founded in Sheffield and now has its head office in Alfreton, grew sales of its Thorntons Branded products by 9 per cent to £49.9m.
Commercial sales rose by 29.3 per cent to £20.2m. However, own store sales fell by 4.8 per cent to £2.8m, which the company attributes to the timing of Christmas deliveries.
John von Spreckelsen, Thorntons executive chairman, said: "We are pleased to report satisfactory trading in the first quarter, traditionally a quieter period for the company.
"Our challenge and key focus area for the board remains the performance in own stores where sales declined in line with management expectations.
"We are continuing to implement a number of new initiatives to drive sales and have recently launched a strong Christmas seasonal range."
