Like-for-like sales grew 4.4% at Topps Tiles in the 13 weeks to January 2, boosted by new ranges and refurbed shop formats, but the rate of growth has slowed down from a 5.4% increase in the year to October. 

In December Topps, which is the UK‘s biggest tile and wood flooring specialist, announced that it had achieved its goal of owning £1 of every £3 spent in the UK domestic tile market.

“I am pleased to report an encouraging start to the financial year with like-for-like sales growth of 4.4% in the first quarter,” said Chief Executive Officer of Topps Matthew Williams. “Our strategy of ‘Out-specialising the specialists‘ continues to be very effective and we are confident that our plan for 2016 will see us deliver  additional profitable sales growth as we further extend the appeal of the Topps brand.”

In that period, the retailer opened the second “lab store” in Shoreditch, which showcases a range of new display and merchandising treatments. The “visualiser”, a Topps website app that allows customers to preview how rooms would look with certain selections, was also improved, and the quarter saw 17 new ranges introduced to the Topps selection.

Over the 13 weeks two stores were opened and another two closed, leaving the total estate at 340, including 13 “Boutique” stores.

As part of an earlier initiative, seven Clearance stores were closed during the period, and the remaining four are being converted to the core format.