// N Brown revenue drops 17.6% as it prepares for a £100 million equity raising
// The group, which owns JD Williams, Simply Be and Jacamo, has an overall net debt of £411.1m
N Brown has reported a 17.6 per cent drop in revenue as it prepares for a £100 million equity raising.
In the 26 weeks to August 29, 2020, the fashion group recorded revenue at £356.7 million, compared with £432.9 million for the period in 2019.
Adjusted profit before tax fell by 28.9 per cent to £22.6 million, from £31.8 million in same period in 2019.
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This was inclusive of absorbing a £17 million IFRS9 Covid-19 bad debt provision to cover the cost of defaults that may arise in the future.
N Brown, which owns JD Williams, Simply Be and Jacamo, has an overall net debt of £411.1 million.
This has been decreased by 17.3 per cent with banking facilities extended and “previous material uncertainty removed”.
It had adjusted EBITDA of £48 million, down 11.3 per cent from 2019.
N Brown is planning a £100 million equity raising, which it said was fully supported by substantial shareholder Lord Alliance.
“Having restructured the business and transitioned to more than 90% of revenues from digital, we now see a clear opportunity to capitalise on various industry drivers – not least the increasing trend towards online retail, and further improve our customer proposition,” N Brown chief executive Steve Johnson said.
“The proposed capital raising will give us the firepower to invest further in our digital capabilities and accelerate our growth strategy, while significantly strengthening the group’s balance sheet to provide us with ongoing flexibility and a strong platform from which to deliver returns for all of our shareholders.”
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