French Connection swings to loss

French Connection Group swung to a 17.4m pre-tax loss last year despite increasing advertising expenditure in the UK last year.

French Connection Group swung to a £17.4m pre-tax loss last year despite increasing advertising expenditure in the UK last year.

The loss for the year to January 31 wipes out the £3.1m profit the retail group registered a year earlier.

The group, which owns the French Connection, Nicole Farhi and Toast retail brands, says that despite the loss retail sales in the UK and Europe increased 2% on a like for like basis, driven by a 9% boost in ladies’ wear revenues.

However, a dip in North American sales partly off-set any gains elsewhere, down 3% on a like for like basis.

Costs across the group’s retail and wholesale divisions increased £1m to £6.7m partly driven by an increase in advertising spend.

Stephen Marks, chairman of the group, says: “The results for last year are disappointing and, to a large extent, are a reflection of the impact on fashion markets of the down-turn in the major world economies and in particular the US market.”

Recommended

Brand experts back Post Bank proposal

Marketing Week

Post Bank, the proposed service that would offer a wider range of financial services through the Post Office network, could be a timely move, according to branding experts. A coalition of business leaders, politicians and unions yesterday (Tuesday) launched a campaign to set up what Billy Hayes, general secretary of the Communication Workers Union, calls […]

Nokia unveils job cuts across all departments

Marketing Week

Nokia has announced it is to axe 1,700 jobs globally with cuts to be made to the sales, marketing and technology management. The mobile company says the job losses will come from the Devices and Markets units as well as its Corporate Development office and global support functions. Nokia is the market leader in handsets […]

Spotify on the hunt for mobile developers

Marketing Week

Spotify is beefing up its mobile division as it gears up to launch on the Android, iPhone and S60 platforms. The on-demand music streaming service has begun a hunt for new developers who specialise in creating applications for the rival mobile operating systems. It’s keen to offer users access to the ad-funded service when they […]