Wickes hails warmer weather boosting retail sales in spring

Wickes Group PLC on Tuesday said it had its best week ever for sales of compost and top soil in the week of the early May bank holiday in the UK, as warm weather boosted retail sales of garden supplies.

Watford, England-based home improvement retailer said revenue rose 6.9% on-year to £533.1 million in the 17 weeks to April 26. Revenue was up 5.5% on a like-for-like basis.

This was boosted by Retail revenue growth which was 9.6% to £396.7 million or 9.2% like-for-like.

The rise in Retail revenue offset a small decline in revenue from Design & Installation. This slipped 0.4% to £136.4 million or by 4.2% on a like-for-like basis.

‘We have been well positioned to benefit from the warmer weather at the start of this year, which has supported the strong sales performance in Retail. For example, in the week of the early May bank holiday we had our biggest ever week for sales of compost and top soil,’ the company said.

Chief Executive Officer David Wood said: ‘This has been a strong start to the new financial year, with the further increase in sales driven exclusively by volume growth, as more customers shop with us.’

He added: ‘While we continue to be mindful of consumer sentiment and a challenging external environment, we have a strong platform in place and we are well set to continue delivering against our strategy.’

Wickes shares rose 9.3% to 215.50 pence each on Tuesday morning in London, giving it a market capitalisation of £516.4 million.

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