Turnover for the year to August 30 rose 5.3 per cent to£710m with operating profits up 12 per cent to£68m. Operating margins increased from 9 to 9.6 per cent. Cash position improved from£80.7m to£89.2m, with£56.3m of borrowings repaid.
Monsoon expects to continue with international expansion plans this year, although it may scale back its UK operation. It plans to open 109 stores globally this year and enter six new countries. It has also expressed an interest in opening trial stores in the US, as well as expanding its e-commerce channel.
However, speaking to the Financial Times, Simon said he was reviewing the company’s UK store portfolio. Underlying sales in the year to August 30 fell 2.1 per cent in the UK.
He said: “We are looking at closures, we have fixed costs and it is much better that we are a healthy business for our staff, so we have to look at staff levels and costs and keep costs down because we have no sales growth.”
Simon has already managed to negotiate extra contributions from suppliers for stock that the retailer has been unable to shift. 10 of Monsoon’s 14 key Indian and Chinese suppliers had agreed to pay a 5 per cent rebate.
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