Gross sales for the 52 weeks to October 29 last year fell by 0.8 per cent to£108.7 million, from£109.6 million the previous year. Pre-tax profit increased to£220,000 from£90,000 the year before, including a£380,000 profit on the disposal of surplus properties.
The company said that trading for the 11 weeks to January 14 has been more encouraging, with like-for-like gross sales 7.1 per cent higher than the previous year.
Its Bournemouth and Poole stores traded particularly strongly, thanks in part to the closure on December 1 of the Castlepoint shopping centre on the outskirts of Bournemouth for health and safety reasons. The centre reopened partially on December 19 and more fully on January 9.
'Against the background of exceptionally harsh trading conditions, we are pleased that our like-for-like sales have proved to be much more resilient than for some others,' said Beales chief executive Allan Allkins. 'Selection of the right product assortment has never been more important to the success of any retail business and we have made good progress in a number of areas.'
Chairman Mike Killingley added: 'While the level of profit generated is unacceptably low, our sales and margin performance over the past year have been stronger than those of many retailers.'
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