Topps Tiles posts hefty loss as market shrinks
Topps Tiles, the Leicester-based tile specialist, has slumped to a hefty full-year loss on the back of a shrinking market.
The retail giant made a deficit of £16.2m for the 52 weeks to 28 September – down from a profit of £6.8m in 2023. The firm put this down to a £19.4m non-cash impairment – primarily of right-of-use assets, and £3.1m expense relating to purchase of remaining Pro Tiler shares.
Revenues also fell by 4.1% to £251.8m over the period.
Topps says the market it operates in has shrunk by 20% since pre-Covid times, but that its revenues are up nearly 15% since then. The company has launched a new strategic goal, “Mission 365” – to grow group sales to £365m, with an adjusted profit before tax margin of 8-10%.
Rob Parker, chief executive said: “2024 has been a challenging year for RMI and especially bigger ticket spend. In the tile market, volumes remain well below pre-pandemic levels. Whilst Topps Group is not immune to these pressures, our growth strategy has served us well and we have continued to outperform the wider tile market.
The start of the new financial year has seen a return to modest sales growth for the group, helped by weaker prior year comparatives and the continued strength of our trade offer. Whilst pleasing, the forward macro indicators for our market remain mixed, in particular weaker consumer confidence, and we need to see a sustained improvement in these metrics before we can be confident of a consumer recovery.”
Topps employs almost 1,700 people and has its headquarters in Enderby, just outside of Leicester.
