It’s been a good six months for retailers in furniture, clothing, car parts and surfwear businesses.
Surfwear king Billabong International reported an 8.3% jump in revenue to $665.3 million, but net profit was down 2% to $88.7 million for the six months to 31 December 2007.
Sales in the US and Europe were strong despite the state of the US market.
CEO Derek O’Neill says: “While the company is not immune to general market conditions, this result shows our sales have been, and continue to be, resilient. The US business had a strong January and retains a solid forward order book.”
While furniture retailer Fantastic Holdings expects continued pressure on discretionary spending, its position at the discount end of the market means it continues to expect good results.
Meanwhile its revenue jumped to $158.3 million for the six months to December compared to $135.4 million for the previous corresponding period. Net profit also jumped to $11.8 million from $8.4 million.
Retailer Super Cheap Auto Group is also optimistic, reporting increased sales to $365.8 million for the six months to December compared to $312.5 for the previous corresponding period. Sales in the car parts group jumped 7.3% to $287.4 million. The company says the outlook is positive for retail sales. Net profit increased to $12.5 million from $9 million.
And it’s also good news for retailer Country Road, with sales jumping to $147.3 million for the six months to December compared to $109.4 million. Net profit also increased to $5.57 million from $5.1 million. The longer term outlook is positive with a good response to the winter clothing range.
Smart Company is a sister publication to The Mandarin, catering to Australia’s entrepreneurs, small and medium business owners and business managers.
