FatFace, the clothing retailer, has cut nearly 300 jobs but returned to profitability in its first full year under the ownership of FTSE 100 heavyweight Next.
The company was acquired by the Leicester-based group for £115.2m in October 2023, a move that initially led to a reported pre-tax loss of £3.2m for the 35 weeks ending 27 January 2024, as reported by .
This figure has since been revised to a pre-tax loss of £5.3m.
Exceptional costs of £7.9m during this period, largely due to the acquisition by Next and subsequent integration into its systems, impacted FatFace's bottom line.
However, recent filings with Companies House reveal that the brand bounced back, posting a pre-tax profit of £3.8m for the 12 months to 25 January 2025.
Revenue also saw an uptick, rising from £191.5m to £236.3m over the year, despite the company's workforce shrinking from 2,721 to 2,412 during the same period.
In terms of geographical performance, FatFace's º£½ÇÊÓƵ turnover increased from £172.5m to £217.3m, while in the Republic of Ireland it rose from £4.6m to £5.3m.
Sales in the USA dipped from £14m to £12.1m, but Canadian revenue grew from £1.3m to £2.5m.
Over the course of the year, the number of full-price FatFace stores in the º£½ÇÊÓƵ decreased from 179 to 175, and in North America, it dropped from 33 to 22.
The newly filed accounts also confirm that FatFace paid a dividend of £8m to Next, a significant increase from the previous year's £1.9m.
Year of 'evolution' for FatFace after Next deal
In a board-endorsed statement, FatFace CEO Will Crumbie declared: "We have made good progress this year in executing our strategy and financial objectives.
"We continued to focus on full price sales, with a strategic approach to discounting at specific times of the year.
"Our store network continues to be a core part of our offer with new stores opened in the year."
He continued: "Looking ahead, we will continue to harness the fundamental strengths of the FatFace brand and business to drive our performance further."
"This means never compromising the quality of our products, being laser focused on our multi-channel offering, all the while remaining dedicated to sustainability."
"Our focus now is on growth; growing our customer base in the º£½ÇÊÓƵ and beyond while staying true to our brand values."
The FatFace chief executive also remarked: "Despite the external economic headwinds and internal changes, the business has continued to make good progress against our strategic objectives."
"The year has been one of evolution – we have migrated our operational systems, realigned our trading stance to focus on full price sales and reduced the overall number of terminal stock units in the business."
"While in the short term this has had a financial impact, ultimately it will set the business up for long-term success."
