Dune London has strong year-end

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Feb 1, 2018

UK footwear retailer The Dune Group said Thursday that its autumn/winter season sales rose a healthy 6.5% and the 52 weeks to January 28 were up 5.2%. With AW18 showing a faster growth rate than the year as a whole, that means sales accelerated in what was one of the toughest season for UK fashion retailers in some years.

That fact was made even more clear with the firm saying that retail sales for the six weeks to December 30 rose 7.2% on a comparable basis, driven by growth across all retail channels. It said that its own stores, its concessions and in particular its online store did well. 

And the performance since Christmas? “Sales during January have continued to be strong rounding out what has been a good year in the UK, despite a challenging retail environment,” it said. “International growth, which is a key strategy for the group, has been robust, and sales at retail in overseas markets now represent 26% of sales.”

Executive chairman Daniel Rubin said the performance reflects hard-working teams and its strategic investments in product, as well as its omnichannel proposition and brand marketing.

“Our focus on delivering exceptional customer service and offering a point of difference at great value has proved popular with our customers and we have successfully maintained our gross margin despite the impact of sterling’s relative weakness during much of the year,” he added.