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"Subdued trading" as ScS orders fall 14%
October 11, 2022
Major furniture and flooring chain ScS says order intake has fallen 14.4% in the last 10 weeks compared to booming demand this time last year as a result of challenging market conditions for consumers.
"Trading since the start of the new financial year [Augist 1] has been subdued, with the challenges of high inflation impacting consumers' disposable income. As previously reported, the sector is seeing softening demand as consumers defer spend on big ticket discretionary purchases." says Steve Carson, CEO of the 98-store chain.
"We are pleased with the strategic progress we have made which, coupled with the strength of the Group's balance sheet, places the business in a strong position to deal with current headwinds. Whilst we expect the coming months to be challenging, we are confident in the longer term growth prospects of the business," he added.
ScS was presenting its preliminary results for the 52 weeks ended 30 July 2022 to shareholders which included record delivered sales for the period of £345m, compared to £319m - up 8% - but profits fell 29% to £13.6m.
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