// Next profits and sales rise thanks to strong performance across retail and on its total platform
// The group reported pre-tax profits came in above expectations at £870.4m for the year to January 2023
Next’s full-year profits beat expectations, however, the retailer forecasts that sales and profits will fall in its current year.
The fashion retailer’s pre-tax profits rose 5.7% to £870.4m in the year to January 2023, £10m above its previous guidance, due to strong sales in both its retail and total platform businesses.
Despite a consumer squeeze on spending, total trading sales jumped 8.4% to £5.15bn last year.
Online sales dipped 2% to £3bn against last year.
Despite the strong performance, Next maintained its current year guidance that sales would fall 1.5% and profits would come in £75m lower.
However, the retailer claimed that “Next can return to higher levels of growth once the cost of living crisis has passed”.
It was confident of this as its Next-branded business is “established but not standing still”, it had developed “outstanding assets and skills” that can deliver growth outside its heartland business, and it had new avenues of growth that it said are “proven, but at the early stages in their development”.
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It’s acquisitions into Reiss, JoJo Maman Bébé, Sealskinz, Joules, MADE.com, Swoon, Aubin, along with a stake in the UK franchises for Victoria’s Secret and GAP delivered £16.8m profit to the group.
It expects new websites for JoJo Maman Bébé to launch in May, Made.com in July, and Joules will go live in April next year.
Next chairman Michael Roney said: “It has been a good year for Next. We have embraced the various challenges and seized the opportunities that have arisen.
”We have prepared (and budgeted) for a difficult year. We are very clear on our priorities.
“If we continue to improve our product ranges, relentlessly manage our costs and upgrade our customer service, whilst also developing new business opportunies; we can lay the foundations for an exceptionally strong business and still deliver healthy profits, cash flow and dividends.”
Next also revealed it had managed to minimise price increases on its products, which will be 7% higher in spring summer, rather than the 8% predicted, falling to 3% in the autumn winter, rather than 6%.
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