| Whittard of Chelsea sales slump, firm exudes cautious outlook |
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LONDON - Tea and coffee retailer Whittard of Chelsea has issued a profits' warning as sales continued to plummet in what the firm called a very tough retail environment.
Like-for-like sales at the firm were down by 3.9 percent in the 20 weeks ending October 16 forcing Whittard to adopt a cautious outlook as far as the full-year profits were concerned. "The retail climate remains very tough, and like-for-like sales for the first 20 weeks of the year to October 16 are down 3.9 percent. Given the current retail environment, it's difficult to forecast what the sentiment will be over the all-important Christmas 2005 period. I must therefore remain cautious about the outcome for the current year," Whittard Chairman Richard Rose said in a statement.
Whittard had reported a 4.1 percent sales slump in the first quarter of the year and the firm admitted in a Regulatory News Service statement that there had been little change in the situation since then. The London-based company, which was founded in 1886, has been hit hard by the general slowdown on the markets as well as the weakening in consumer confidence.
The London bombings and the spiraling fuel prices in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita have also dampened the consumers' appetite for shopping and Whittard has been hard hit by this. Possible takeover talks had fueled a 30 percent rise in Whittard shares in July, but the latest announcement hit shares by 4 pence or 5.2 percent.
The shares had whittled down to 72.5 pence in early morning trading. This is the lowest the shares have hit since September 11,2002.
Posted
on : Thu, 20 Oct 2005 07:40 GMT | Business News
By : Anne Philips
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