Dunelm's annual profit up 7% after strong fourth quarter

8th Jul 2014 08:09

UK homeware retailer Dunelm said that annual profits grew by around 7% after a strong end to the financial year with sales growth picking up in the final quarter.The group said it expects to report a pre-tax profit of £116m for the year to June 28th, up from £108.1m previously.Total sales increased by 7.8% over the period, helped 12% growth in the last 13 weeks of the year.Like-for-like (LFL) growth in the last quarter picked up to 5.5%, lifting the full-year improvement to 2.1%."This reflects in part the impact of the summer 2013 heatwave which held back performance in the early part of this financial year, but also the positive impact on sales from our investment in key growth initiatives," it said. Meanwhile, new space contributed 5.7% growth over the full year, reflecting the 12 new opened shops during the year. Dunelm's superstore portfolio now comprises of 136 units, compared with its medium-term target of 200. The company said it has a further 11 legally committed new store opportunities which should open in the current financial year.Chief Executive Nick Wharton said: "With a strong pipeline of new stores, further enhancements to our multi-channel capability and a positive response to the continuing development of our customer proposition, the board remains confident in the group's long-term growth prospects."BC