Robert Dyas reports 6.3% increase in LFL sales

Up-for-sale home appliance and general merchandise retailer Robert Dyas has today revealed that pre-Christmas trading was significantly up year-on-year during the recent festive period.

In the 13 weeks to December 24th 2011, like-for-like (LFL) sales including VAT grew 6.3 per cent compared to the same period in 2010, while year-to-date trading from March 27th 2011 increased 4.2 per cent.

The company is currently in the midst of a rebranding exercise, with new product lines and store fascias having been introduced throughout its portfolio, and it now appears to be achieving some progress after an unstable period around four years ago which led to a restructuring of the business.

CEO Steve McVey left the retailer in December after just five months in the hotseat, and was replaced by Finance Director Graham Coles.

Commenting on the recent trading period, Coles said: “Sales growth accelerated in the immediate four weeks before Christmas with a LFL increase of 7.4 per cent.

“Our core ranges, such as consumable products and cookware were particularly strong - for our customers it seems to have been a Christmas where value for money and our helpful and practical product ranges have proven attractive.

“As with many other retailers our internet sales have proven particularly strong, growing by 46.2 per cent year-on-year over the four weeks, but this should not obscure the substantial advances achieved right across our traditional high street retail chain stores.”

Source : Ben Sillitoe – Retail Gazette
www.retailgazette.co.uk/articles/22411-robert-dyas-reports-strong-runup-to-christmas