COLEFAX GROUP PLC
(“Colefax” or the “Group”)
Preliminary Results for the year ended 30 April 2024
Colefax is an international designer and distributor of furnishing fabrics & wallpapers and owns a leading interior decorating business. The Group trades under five brand names, serving different segments of the soft furnishings marketplace; these are Colefax and Fowler, Cowtan & Tout, Jane Churchill, Manuel Canovas and Larsen.
Key Points
· Sales increased by 2% to £107.16m (2023 – £104.82m) and by 4.8% on a constant currency basis
· Pre-tax profit decreased by 10% to £7.73m (2023 – £8.54m) – mainly due to higher Fabric Division operating costs and a weaker US Dollar exchange rate
· Earnings per share decreased by 1.6% to 88.3p (2023 – 89.7p)
· Share buyback returned £7.2m of surplus capital to shareholders in September 2023
· Cash at 30 April 2024 of £17.8m (2023 – £19.8m)
· Fabric Division sales decreased by 2.1% to £90.54m (2023 – £92.51m) but increased by 0.6% on a constant currency basis
– US sales down by 3%, UK sales up by 3% and Europe sales up by 8% (on a constant currency basis)
· Decorating Division delivered a strong performance with sales up by 42% to £13.51m (2023 – £9.52m) and pre-tax profit of £847,000 (2023 – £96,000 loss)
· Board is proposing a final dividend of 2.9p (2023 2.8p) making a total for the year of 5.6p (2023 – 5.4p)
David Green, Chief Executive of Colefax Group plc, said:
“The Group has delivered a good performance in relatively challenging market conditions and with a weaker US Dollar exchange rate. Over the last year higher interest rates have reduced housing market activity and we are expecting difficult market conditions in the year ahead and this is reflected in our existing market forecast. The Group is well placed to benefit from falling interest rates as this should boost housing market activity but it will take time for this benefit to feed through to home spending.”