REG - Card Factory PLC - Trading Statement

Card FactoryAnnouncement

16/01/2024 07:01

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RNS Number : 7621Z  Card Factory PLC  16 January 2024

16 January 2024

Card Factory plc

("cardfactory")

 

Trading Statement

 

Positive momentum across the business; effective execution of growth strategy

 

Full year adjusted profit before tax expected to be at the top of the range of
market expectations

 

cardfactory, the UK's leading specialist retailer of greeting cards, gifts and
celebration essentials, announces a trading update for the eleven months ended
31 December 2023.

 

Trading Update

·    Total sales for the eleven months ended 31 December 2023 of £476.9
million (prior year of £432.6 million), an increase of 10.2% year-on-year,
reflecting continued positive momentum across the business and the effective
execution of our strategy:

o  Store revenue grew +8.2% on a Like-For-Like(1) (LFL) basis, reflecting the
strength of our value and quality proposition across card and gifts combined
with the positive impact of our Store Evolution Programme.

o  Continued positive performance in Everyday and seasonal card ranges, with
+5.4% LFL growth in the period. This was supplemented by strong growth in our
gifts and celebration essentials ranges of +9.9% LFL, including double-digit
growth in categories such as candles and soft toys.

o  Online(2) LFL sales of -12.8% for the 11 months to 31 December, an
improvement from the half year driven by positive performance in
cardfactory.co.uk (YTD +0.2%), reflecting the ongoing investment in online
capability, platform performance and customer experience.

o  Further progress in Partnerships, including a profitable contribution from
new partnerships with Matalan and Liwa Trading Enterprises.

o  Recently acquired SA Greetings continues to perform in line with
expectations, contributing £9.1 million of revenue in the period.

 

1  The Like-For-Like (LFL) calculation is based on gross sales for Stores
that were trading in both the current year and the comparative period.

2  "Online": Like-for-like sales for cardfactory.co.uk and
gettingpersonal.co.uk combined.

 

Christmas Trading

·    Strong Christmas trading performance with LFL store revenue +7.8% in
November and December. This was driven by the increased number of transactions
and increased average basket value; targeted price increases enacted in the
prior year had fully annualised before the Christmas period.

o  Strong year-on-year growth in seasonal cards reflecting insight-led
innovation to develop and broaden the appeal of the overall range.

o  Expanded gift offer and introduction of key licensed ranges, alongside the
expansion of own label, resonated well with customers.

o  Very encouraging performance at cardfactory.co.uk with double-digit LFL
sales growth in November and December.

o  Positive impact of our Store Evolution Programme enabled the optimisation
of space to ensure the correct balance between Christmas cards, gifts and
celebration essentials.

o  Improvements in stock management and replenishment processes enabled us to
capitalise on particularly strong demand in the second half of December.

 

Outlook

Given the strength of performance in the year to date, the Board expects to
deliver full year adjusted profit before tax (excluding one off items) at the
top of the range of market expectations(3) and remains confident in the
achievement of the long-term financial and operational targets set out at our
Capital Markets Strategy Update in May 2023.

 

3  According to Company-compiled consensus estimates as of 15 January 2024,
the current range of market expectations for FY24 adjusted profit before tax
is £58.4 million to £62.0 million.

 

Darcy Willson-Rymer, Chief Executive Officer, commented:

"We are pleased to have delivered a strong performance over the Christmas
period, further demonstrating the progress we are making on our strategic
growth initiatives. Our value and quality proposition continues to resonate
with customers at a time when value for money is as important as ever. Even
during challenging times, consumers want to celebrate key life moments and
this was reflected in the positive performance that we saw in the Christmas
trading period and throughout the year to date."

"Colleagues across all areas of our business have worked incredibly hard to
deliver an improved experience for our customers this year. As we look ahead,
we remain focused on delivering against our growth strategy by helping our
customers to affordably celebrate all life's moments."

 

Notification of Preliminary Results

 

We will announce our Preliminary Results for the year ended 31 January 2024 on
30 April 2024.

 

 

Enquiries

 

Card Factory
plc
via Teneo (below)

Darcy Willson-Rymer, Chief Executive Officer

Matthias Seeger, Chief Financial Officer

 

Teneo
                                +44 (0) 207
353 4200

James Macey White / Jo Blackshaw
                          cardfactory@teneo.com
(mailto:cardfactory@teneo.com)

 

 

 

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