Hallenstein Glasson Holding has upgraded it’s profit forecasts for the first half of the financial year due to an impressive jump in sales. Consumers seemed to be out in force for the brand with sales and profit both increasing by an unexpected margin.
The group has indicated that the sales for the first half of the financial year (six months to February the first) was $147 million dollars. This increase represents a 19% increase from the recorded sales in the previous period of $123 million dollars. Importantly, the net profit after tax is expected to be between $14.75 million and $15.25 million dollars. This represents an increase of 63% over the previous period. In the previous period, the profit was $9.2 million.
The guidance given by the business will be smashed by up to 50%.
The final indicator which also points to a hugely positive outcome is the gross margin. The gross margin for the first half of the year is estimated to sit at 3.5 percentage points up on last years figure. Mark Goddard, the chief executive of Hallenstein Glasson Holdings, attributes this increase to strong sales and an improved strategy in the way that the company purchases. There was also a decrease in Hallensteins promotions and discounting.
The groups balance sheet is strong at this stage and opportunities will be investigated to grow the business more. A war chest is also being stored to allow the business to weather the tough retail environment.