Sosandar, the women's fashion retailer, has today cut its sales forecast for the year by £5m, but maintains that a shift away from clothing discounts will help keep profits steady.
The AIM-listed brand posted a pre-tax loss of £0.6m in the six months to 30 September, an improvement from a pre-tax loss of £1.3m in the six months to September 2023, as reported by .
Revenue was reported at £16.2m, a decrease from £22.2m last year, with the decline attributed to a "transition away from price promotional activity outside the major scheduled sale events," according to Sosandar.
The company reaffirmed its pre-tax profit expectations but scaled back its revenue forecasts for the full year to £40m, down from market predictions of £45.6m.
The firm's medium-term objective is to achieve a pre-tax profit of at least £10m, it further stated.
The Wilmslow-based company, which has been retailing womenswear online since its inception in 2016, launched three physical retail stores in the six-month period, reporting "strong trading in all three, coupled with a demonstrable uplift in traffic to the website in the areas where the stores are located,".
"The opening of our first three own stores marks a key point in the company's development, as we move towards becoming a true multi-channel retailer," co-CEOs Ali Hall and Julie Lavington declared.
"We have hit the ground running with strong footfall and conversion, and have also seen a demonstrable uplift in traffic to our website in the areas where our stores are located."
"We remain committed to delivering in line with our growth strategy, focusing on margin enhancement to improve profitability, and we are already seeing the results of this in our performance. This has continued into October and we remain excited for what lies ahead for Sosandar."
The company further reported that trading in October has been robust, with revenues surpassing those of the previous year and a "continuation of a strong gross margin" as it approaches the crucial golden quarter.
