SuperGroup, the young fashion business that owns brand Superdry and retail chain Cult, said that pre-tax profit surged 86% to £14.6m in the first half of the year as the company revealed it was optimistic about Christmas trading.

Underlying pretax profit rocketed 68.9% to £13.5m.

Total sales soared 65% to £90.3m for the 26 weeks to October 31. Retail sales increased 72% to £54.4m, reflecting the retailer’s expansion from 42 stores to 55 during the period. The business also opened 13 concessions during the period. The company said it was still being offered lease incentives and is “taking advantange of these wherever possible”.

The retailer said: “The early signs of Christmas trading are very encouraging and we are well positioned to capitalise on the remainder of this busy trading period.”

Underlying operating margin increased marginally to 14.9% from 14.8% compared to the same period last year.

Online sales were up 140% on last year.

SuperGroup chief executive Julian Dunkerton said: “We are delighted to report such strong growth in the first half of the year. We are very pleased by the progress being made across the whole business, particularly with our recent Autumn/Winter range and the new store fit-out, which are delivering improved business performance and profitability.”

The strong results come just a month after Superdry was found to be struggling to meet orders of its heavy winter outerwear due to manufacturing delays, prompting some stockists to cancel orders.

Topics