Outdoor retailer Blacks Leisure has said the recent Arctic weather conditions boosted its turnaround plans as consumers snapped up jackets, scarves and hats.
The cold snap helped increase like-for-like sales in its outdoor business by 10.2% in the key trading period of December despite a strong set of comparative figures the previous year.
The company, which owns the Blacks and Millets brands, said the December performance lifted overall group like-for-like sales for the half-year to the end of December to a decline of just 0.1%.
It is in talks with parties interested in buying all or parts of the business but has insisted it will return to profit if a merger fails to go through.
As part of its turnaround plans, the retailer has closed many of its loss-making stores, leaving it with a core estate of about 300, introduced a loyalty card and recruited a team of 19 outdoor experts to advise customers.
It has revamped 12 stores, which now account for 10% of its sales, and plans to open another outlet next month.
Chief executive Neil Gillis said: “The group has performed strongly during the key Christmas trading period highlighting the strength of our offering in what continues to be a challenging retail market.”
The Northampton-based retailer, which made a pre-tax loss of £8.5 million in the first half of its financial year, said the strong winter performance helped to offset the decline of the business in the summer.
Mr Gillis added: “The turnaround programme remains on track and we enter the New Year in a positive financial position and focused on continuing to deliver the benefits of the turnaround strategy.”
Shares in Blacks were up 5% following the trading update.
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