Paul Smith shows signs of progress but profits still in decline

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Feb 2, 2018

British business Paul Smith is slowly getting back on its feet. The company has revealed a 3.5% increase in revenue to £185 million for the year to 30 June, while operating profit before exceptional items increased by 45% to £5.7 million.

The results come after a year of restructuring at the company following an 8% decrease in full-year revenue in the previous year.

The high-end clothing company spent most of 2017 carrying out further restructuring measures and strengthening its two product lines Paul Smith and PS Paul Smith. It said the streamlined branding “continues to make progress and is now performing well across all channels.”

Retail sales for the year increased by 11% overall and 3% on a like-for-like basis, reflecting the closure of the Paul Smith Fifth Avenue store in New York in January 2016 and the relocation of the Paul Smith flagship store in Paris in September 2016.

New shops opened in Paris, Copenhagen, Birmingham and Manchester with a further opening planned for Berlin. Retail is now Paul Smith’s largest sales channel, it said in official documents.

However, extraordinary items and the continued restructuring sent the brand’s profit for the year tumbling by 74% from £7.8 million to £2.1 million.

The company said its retail performance has continued to improve since year end, with season to date sales for the AW 17 season up 18%, or 11% on a like-for-like basis.

And whilst wholesale sale decreased by 11% to £74.1 million in 2017, hit by weak demand in the UK, France, Russia and Asia, wholesale forward orders for SS 18 were up 7% on the previous Spring Summer season.

Paul Smith has stores in London, Paris, Milan, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Korea and the U.A.E.