Card Factory hit by "disappointing" online sales

A good Christmas trading period for Card Factory was offset by slow and “disappointing” online trading.

In preliminary results, the Wakefield-based retailer said it was confident of delivering full year underlying profit before tax for the current year ahead of expectations.

Total year-to-date sales growth of +4.3%, and for the 11 months ended 31 December 2015 this rose 8.1%.

It had opened 51 net new stores in the period bringing its estate to 865 stores as of December 2016. 

However its online offering cardfactory.co.uk continued to grow slowly, from a low base and its gettingpersonal.co.uk brand performance was “disappointing” and continues to be “broadly flat”. It is targeting medium term sales growth of at least 10% per annum for the business.

Expectations for underlying profit before tax for the year to 31 January 2017 stand at between £80.9m to £83.0m.

Karen Hubbard, Card Factory’s chief executive officer, said: “As I approach my first anniversary with the business, it is pleasing to report that Card Factory has traded well through the competitive Christmas trading period with customers once again responding well to our card and non-card ranges. As a result, like-for-like store sales in the fourth quarter of the financial year have returned to our expected range.

“Whilst all retailers will clearly face cost pressures in 2017, the proven strength of our retail proposition, underpinned as ever by our unique vertically integrated model, provides our business with significant competitive advantage. We believe that this will enable us to further increase our market share as we have done every year since the business was formed in 1997.”

Chief financial officer Darren Bryant also announced his retirement after eight years with the company, and will continue in his role until a successor has been identified.

Darren Bryant commented: “Having started my professional career some 25 years ago, I feel that the time is right to take a break. My time at Card Factory has been, by some margin, the highlight of my career and so it was with mixed emotions that I informed the Board of my desire to retire from the Group.

I am immensely proud of everything we have achieved together in growing the business from a “successful, yet relatively unknown, Yorkshire family company to the position of clear market leader and a FTSE250 national retailer. The Group is in an incredibly strong position and I look forward to watching it grow and prosper in the years ahead.”