Topps Tiles sales improve despite challenging external cost environment

For the 26 weeks to March 29, 2025, Topps Tiles reported a 4% jump in group sales to £127.7m, with underlying sales growth in the second quarter of 4.4%.

Underlying like-for-like sales for the Topps Tiles brand were 3.7% higher year-on-year in the second quarter, and like-for-like sales were 3% higher in the first half overall.

Total sales in the Topps Tiles brands were up 12% year-on-year in the first half, while the number of active traders jumped 11% to 146,000—which offset the dip in homeowner sales.

Digital sales during the period jumped 15%, while online traffic was up fourfold.

Topps Tiles said that its focus on rebuilding profitability—including a review of pricing, product mix and discounting—has delivered “a strong improvement in gross margins” in recent weeks.

Despite this, the retailer warned that “the external cost environment” remains challenging, and said the increases in national living wage and national insurance will increase the group’s cost base by c.£4m from this month.

The retailer also said it had made “good progress” in identifying potential candidates to succeed departing chief executive Rob Parker.

Chief executive Parker said: “Following our return to sales growth in the early weeks of the year, we are pleased to see this trend accelerate in the second quarter, driven by some initial signs of success from our new strategic initiatives, including an improved trader digital experience and further category extensions.

“While macroeconomic indicators remain mixed, we remain focused on the delivery of our strategy which we are confident will lead to the achievement of our Mission 365 goal over the medium term.”