Superdry: Losses widen, CFO quits and boss admits a ‘difficult’ period
Embattled retailer Superdry posted further losses in its half year update, blaming a challenging retail market and underperformance of its wholesale segment.
In an update on its performance in the first half of this year, the British retailer said revenues were down 23.5 per cent to £219.8m.
Adjusted loss before tax widened to £25.3m from £13.6m when compared with the same period the year before, and pre-tax profit sat at £3.3m up from a loss of £17.7m.
Julian Dunkerton, founder and chief executive Officer, said: “This has clearly been a difficult period for Superdry.
“A challenging consumer retail market, set against a backdrop of macroeconomic uncertainty and some remarkably unseasonal weather conditions have all combined to weaken the financial performance of the Group.
He added: “These macro and external factors have been further exacerbated by the underperformance of our Wholesale segment.
“Whilst, to some extent, this was expected due to the decision to exit our US operations and the sale of the brand rights in non-core territories, the segment continues to prove challenging.”
In the last year, Superdry has been trying to keep its head above water and has introduced a number of cost cutting measures.
Back in October, it signed a joint venture with Reliance Brands Holding UK Ltd (RBUK) for the sale of its intellectual property in South Asia, in its latest bid to boost funds.
It mirrored an agreement announced by Superdry in March to sell the intellectual property of its Asia Pacific offering to South Korean retail group Cowell Fashion Company for $50m (£40m).
Separately, this morning the firm also announced the departure of its chief financial officer, Shaun Wills, after nearly three years at the firm.
Retail veteran Giles David has been appointed Interim on an interim basis and will join the business at the end of the month, and will later join the board in April.
David has held roles at both McColls and the Casual Dining Group.
He was embattled chemist’s chief financial officer at the time it went into administration in May 2022, and later reduced by Morrisons.
Superdry shares were down three per cent when markets opened this morning.