Fashion tycoon Sir Philip Green celebrated a small profit rise at Arcadia, despite the effects of the worst summer washout in years.

Operating profit rose 1.6 per cent to£293.3 million on sales up 5.2 per cent to£1.86 billion. Like-for-likes jumped 2.1 per cent.

Green said: “In spite of the poor weather, the brands continue to be managed in an efficient way. Their focus has been on maintaining clean stock positions by working with our supplier base to ensure speed to market and newness of product.”

In the first seven weeks of the new financial year, comparable store sales increased 1 per cent. Green said Arcadia was well-positioned to grow in the UK and internationally.

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