Customers took to high street Quiz stores and concessions and helped the fashion giant to an 11 per cent rise in Christmas sales compared to last year.
The Glasgow-based retailer’s “trademark dressy occasion-wear” took sales at Christmas to £9.8 million, up from £8.8m over the same period the year before.
The December sales were up 14% year-on-year as online orders dropped by 14%. This was due to shoppers returning to the high streets in what Quiz called “the first Christmas without any social restrictions.”
Cost pressures in the sector could affect consumer demand, according to the retailer. But, the chain maintained its full-year profit forecasts and claimed it is in a good position to attain longer-term profitability.
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With total group sales in the period up £1m, the stronger demand helped offset slightly weaker than anticipated revenues in the weeks prior to the period and contributed to a 3% increase in revenues in the three months to December 31, 2022, which was “in line with the board’s expectations”.
Group revenues in the nine months to December 31 totalled £75.2m, representing a 23% increase on the £61m generated in the equivalent period in the previous year.
Quiz said: “The group is pleased with the gross margins generated during the period which are consistent with those generated in the same period in 2019, prior to the impact of Covid-19.”
Sales growth was driven by a 19% increase in revenues generated across Quiz’s UK store and concession portfolio to £6.2m. Quiz said that “these revenues reflect strong like-for-like growth on the sales generated in the prior year and in 2019”.
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Online revenues decreased 14% to £1.8m with sales through Quiz’s own website consistent with the previous year “and in-line with board’s expectations”.
International revenues, with five stores and 18 concessions in Ireland and international franchise partners, increased 20% to £1.8m.
Quiz also said: “The board is encouraged by the positive performance delivered during the period which again highlights the strength and awareness of the Quiz brand and growing customer demand for its trademark dressy and occasionwear offering.
“However, the board recognises that current macroeconomic pressures may impact consumer demand across the sector.”
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Tarak Ramzan, Quiz chief executive, said: “We are pleased with the strong consumer demand for Quiz and the group’s sales performance during the important Christmas trading period. This again reflected the benefits of our omnichannel model as well as the Quiz brand’s outstanding reputation for delivering glamorous occasion-wear as great value.
“Whilst the wider trading environment is expected to be challenging over the coming months, we are confident that Quiz is well positioned to deliver a performance at least in line with the Board’s expectations in the current financial year.”
Analysts Panmure said: “As we approach the anniversary of the recovery of store sales from omicron the company is making some general but sensible comments about the extent of uncertainty in the market overall, while it is still clearly happy with the seasonal outturn.
“We will await further evidence of how UK clothing markets will develop into the spring/summer season before revisiting our numbers.
“But it looks to us as though Quiz has put itself in a good place and has confirmed its confidence in beating FY3/23 market expectation.” Shares in Quiz closed down 4.18%, or 0.7p, at 16.05p.