Topps Tiles grows market share as profits rise for first time in six years
SHARES in Topps Tiles surged more than six per cent yesterday after the retailer posted its first rise in adjusted pre-tax profit since 2007.
The company, which has 327 stores, said adjusted pre-tax profit rose 2.2 per cent to £13m in the year to 28 September, although revenues were flat at £177.8m.
“It has been a good year for the group especially considering the circumstances. It’s easy to forget that the economic conditions we found ourselves in earlier this year were very tough,” chief executive Matthew Williams told City A.M.
He added that “self-help” measures – including improving the layout of its stores and keeping a lid on costs – had helped grow its market share from 27 per cent to 28.5 per cent in the period in an industry that is predicted to shrink by three per cent in 2013.
Williams said while economic conditions had improved, housing transactions had yet to reach the levels seen before the recession.
“We have only got 1m of housing transactions, which is still long way off from the average of 1.1m to 1.2m a year,” he said.
Topps Tiles said trading in the first eight weeks of its new financial year were encourage, with like-for-like sales up 7.4 per cent.
It plans to trial a smaller 1,000 square feet format of its store on UK high streets, which it could increase to 60 if successful.