Sales rise at Topps Tiles
Tile and flooring specialist Topps Tiles had a "robust performance" in its last six months during which time it recorded pre-tax profits of £10m, it said this morning. Like-for-like revenue at the Leicestershire-based company was also up 1.8 per cent in the half-year to 2 April.
Profit before tax had risen 35 per cent from its 2010 results of £7.4m.
Group revenue was £89.2m, a slight dip from its 2010 result of £91.4m. However, the result is a 1.5 per cent increase when restated on a same reporting week basis, as the 2010 period contained 27 weeks.
Operating costs were £44.1m (2010: £43.5m), while operating profit stood at £9.1m, a drop from £10.3m in 2010.
Adjusted profit before tax was £7.2m (2010: £7.8m).
Matthew Williams, chief executive of Topps Tiles, said he considered the company's performance to be "robust in light of the prevailing economic conditions and in comparison to our sector peers".
He added: "We are encouraged with these results, which demonstrate growth in like-for-like sales and gross margin over the period, and are in line with management's expectations. We remain committed to our strategy of delivering outstanding value and service to our customers which will enable us to retain our market leading position.
"We are continuing to manage the business by balancing short term constraints with longer term opportunities. Like-for-like sales growth across the period has given us confidence to continue investing in infrastructure to drive longer term growth and to increase marketing spend to continue to promote our brand. Current trading results reflect a more cautious approach amongst our consumers but we remain confident that we will continue to deliver our financial and operational objectives".
Topps Tiles' net debt position at the period end was £50m, a reduction on its 2010 position of £57.7m.
