Briscoe Group, which posted a 10 per cent gain in annual profit, said it is "cautiously optimistic" about the year ahead as many retailers struggle to grow earnings.
Net profit rose to $33.6 million in the 52 weeks ended Jan. 26, from $30.5 million a year earlier, the Auckland-based company said in a statement. That's in line with its most recent forecast in January that profit would exceed $33 million, although below the $34.1 million mean forecast of analysts polled by Reuters. Sales rose 6.8 per cent to $483.6 million, compared with analyst expectations of $482.5 million.
Briscoe, which operates homeware and sports goods chains, said the past year was challenging for many retailers as a slow start to winter and increased rivalry prompted it to offer "more aggressive promotions" which reduced its margins.
"The group's gross profit margin for the year decreased from 38.86 per cent to 38.5 per cent, reflecting the extraordinarily challenging beginning to the year as a result of the very late start to the winter category sales and also the continued competiveness of the market throughout the year," managing director Rod Duke said.
"While many commentators are talking up the outlook for the New Zealand economy, we see a number of retailers continuing to struggle to grow profitability," Duke said. "Our experience leads us to be cautiously optimist about the year ahead for Briscoe Group."
