The British clothing retailer Next Plc closed the 2021/22 financial year with a strong increase in sales and more than doubled its profit. The company expects further growth for the current year, but cut its forecasts on Thursday due to the foreseeable economic consequences of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
In the financial year that ended in January, reported group sales amounted to 4.63 billion pounds sterling (5.56 billion euros). It was 30.9 percent above the level of the previous year, which was marked by the consequences of the Covid 19 pandemic. Compared to the pre-crisis year 2019/20, sales increased by 8.4 percent. The clothing retailer’s total revenues, which also include commission business, grew 34.1 percent year-on-year to £4.86 billion.
The group was able to more than double its earnings compared to the previous year. Net profit jumped 136.3 percent to 677.5 million British pounds (814.2 million euros). The level of 2019/20 was thus exceeded by 11.0 percent.
Management is aiming for further growth in the current financial year. However, in view of the expected consequences of the war in Ukraine and weaker prospects in some other foreign markets, the clothing supplier lowered its forecasts. The company explained that the temporary cessation of online business in Russia and Ukraine alone would result in a drop in sales of around 65 million pounds sterling.
For the year as a whole, the group now only expects growth in sales of non-discounted goods of five percent. An increase of seven percent had previously been promised. Pre-tax profit guidance has been reduced by £10m to £850m. Next now only expects an increase of 3.3 percent compared to the previous year.