‘Changing retail environment’ leaves Fenwick in the red

Fenwick has published its financial statement for the 52 weeks ending 26 January 2024. The retailer blamed the “cost-of-living crisis and a changing retail environment” for its pre-tax loss of £28.4 million.

The year prior, Fenwick’s pre-tax profit sat a £57.1 million, thanks to the sale of its iconic New Bond Street store for £430 million.

Company turnover was down by 7% year-on-year to £184.2 million and gross sales were down by 6% to £303.6 million.

The company said: “The market environment continued to provide a challenging backdrop to sales… Mortgage rates continued to be high, as did inflation, contributing further to the ongoing effects of the cost-of-living crisis.

“In the last quarter, sales were further impacted by heavy discounting by competitors. This has impacted the Company’s ability to limit discounting and contain costs relative to sales.”

Despite this, the Gross Margin increased to 43.1%.

Looking ahead, Fenwick is refocusing on “its stores to the communities in which they are located” while continuing to invest in online and “traditional channels”.

This follows the recent news that Nigel Blow, who was a long-serving executive at Harrods under Mahomed Al Fayed, will not become the CEO of Fenwick despite being set to start this month.

The new appointment was supposed to be part of Fenwick’s transformation plans, which sold its Bond Street store last year to re-invest in its Newcastle flagship and digital strategy, as well as expand in other areas including its restaurant offering.

However, things took a turn after allegations against Mahomed Al Fayed surfaced. Despite this, Fenwick has given no reason for the decision.