PZ Cussons boss: ‘Most challenging external environment many of us have seen’
Imperial Leather owner PZ Cussons has seen revenue growth boosted in the third quarter, despite Brits buying less hand sanitiser now.
In a trading update on Wednesday morning, the personal healthcare giant said its third quarter like-for-like revenue growth was 8.5 per cent.
The FTSE 250 firm, which owns brands including Carex and St Tropez, said UK hand hygiene category sales had remained lower year on year. The brand saw sales shoot up amid the pandemic and now the firm said it was “cycling through the impact of demand related to Covid”.
“Revenue remains above pre-pandemic levels and momentum continues to improve, with the rate of year on year decline ameliorating,” the firm’s update stated.
PZ Cussons boss Jonathan Myers, said the external environment was “amongst the most challenging many of us have seen.”
“We are removing costs that the consumer does not value, and have plans in place to meet evolving consumer needs, including innovation to offer everyday great value as well as more premium-priced launches,” he added.
“While the coming months will continue to be challenging for us and the wider consumer goods sector, the strength of our brands and our strategic progress gives me confidence in the long term prospects for the business.”
Shares were up slightly in morning trading on Wednesday.