// N Brown posts drop in revenue for first quarter
// Fashion retailer sees rise in digital sales across the board
// New CEO Steve Johnson says full year estimates remain “unchanged”
N Brown Group Plc posted a 3.8 per cent drop in total revenue for its first quarter, whilst re-affirming it has a “clear strategy” for staying on track for its full year.
In the 13 weeks to June 1, N Brown said digital revenues were up 3 per cent, while product revenue declined 5.4 per cent.
The Manchester-headquartered company noted 83 per cent of total revenue is now from digital sales, and 84 per cent of digital traffic is now from mobile devices.
“In line with our strategy, we delivered digital revenue growth across JD Williams, Simply Be, Ambrose Wilson and Jacamo as we continue to improve our customer offer whilst managing the decline of our legacy offline business,” said newly installed N Brown chief executive Steve Johnson.
“We’re pleased to report a solid trading performance in the first quarter. The retail market remains challenging, but we have a clear strategy to deliver profitable digital growth and our full year expectations are unchanged.”
Within womenswear, the company said, JD Williams delivered 5.9 per cent digital growth and 78 per cent of revenue is now digital, while Simply Be increased digital revenue by 4.6 per cent in the quarter.
Ambrose Wilson delivered digital revenue growth of 10.1 per cent in the quarter and 56 per cent of its revenue is now digital. Menswear digital revenue increased 8.8 per cent in the quarter driven by a good performance from Jacamo.
Click here to sign up to Retail Gazette‘s free daily email newsletter
