Paul Smith revenue jumps to almost £200m amid expansion drive

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Jan 9, 2019

Designer brand Paul Smith spent last year investing in new shops and upgrading its e-commerce capabilities, and its effort seem to have paid off, posting increases in both annual revenues and pre-tax profits.

In the year ended 30 June 2018, new Paul Smith stores opened in Manchester, England and Berlin, Germany, and the brand acquired four shops in Hong Kong and a further one in Luxembourg which had been previously operated by franchise partners.

This helped the company achieve a 12% increase in retail sales, and wholesale sales to franchise partners, department stores and selected multi-brand retailers grew by 2.8% to £76.2m.

The brand’s online site also performed particularly well, up 26% on the previous year, while its license business experienced a 3% decline in income mainly due to a weaker Japanese yen and the termination of a contract in Japan.

In total, the company’s annual revenues are nearing the £200m mark, reaching £197m in the financial year to the end of June. This represents a 6.7% on the previous year.

Meanwhile, pre-tax profits increased by 3% to £3.3m, but profit for the year fell to £1.94m from £2.0m a year earlier.

“Whilst we do not underestimate the challenges in our market, we have made significant progress in returning to growth and building a strong foundation as a result of the significant investment and efforts made. Based on current levels of trade we expect a more positive outcome for the coming year,” said the company after revealing exceptional costs of £2m related to a reorganisation.

Since year end, Paul Smith has opened new stores in Copenhagen, Denmark and Kings Cross, London. There are further openings planned in Munich, Germany and California, US this year.