Wickes has said it had made an “encouraging start” to the year, with performance “in line with expectations”, despite a 0.6% dip in like-for-like sales.
For the 16 weeks ended 22 April, the group reported its ‘do-it-for-me’ sales saw a 9.3% increase, however, core like-for-like sales fell by 3.6%.
As a result, Wickes attributed the drop to “adverse weather in 2023”, affecting outdoor and weather-related categories.
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It said: “Storms in the prior year also drove significant sales uplifts in fencing in the comparative period.”
According to the omnichannel retailer, trade sales “continue to perform well” reflecting healthy trade order book pipelines. However, DIY sales remain lower year-on-year.
Despite, inflation remaining “mixed across categories” the group stated it is slowing overall, in line with its expectations.
“This has been an encouraging start to the year where we have again seen the benefits of our uniquely balanced business model delivering well in a challenging economic environment,” Wickes CEO David Wood said.
“Our performance has been underpinned by further momentum in trade, as local traders continue to turn to Wickes to save them time and money, and a strong performance in Do-it-for-me.”
He added: “As we continue to make progress across our strategic growth drivers, we are confident in the group’s prospects for both the remainder of this year and the long term.”
Wickes is ranked as a Top50 retailer in the 2023 RXUK Top500 report, click here to download.
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