Matalan’s sales slip

DISCOUNT retailer Matalan saw sales dip by 1% last year to £1.12bn.

The group, which is in the process of moving from Skelmersdale to Knowsley, saw earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation slip by 5% to £95.4m in the 53 weeks to March 1.

Matalan, which has 227 stores, blamed “challenging” trading conditions and increased markdowns due to adverse weather in early spring for the results.

The company, owned by the Hargreaves family, is also refinancing its debt by issuing £492m in new bonds that will be due for repayment in 2019 and 2020.

In the nine weeks since the end of the financial year sales improved 5.5% compared to the same period last year.