Moss Bros reports wider loss
MENSWEAR retailer Moss Bros yesterday posted widening losses but said it was confident that it would return to profit “sooner rather than later”.
Moss Bros reported a pre-tax loss of £3m for the six months to 1 August, compared to £2m for the same period the year before.
The group, which also runs the Savoy Taylors Guild and Cecil Gee chains, said total group sales were down 0.6 per cent with like-for-like sales dipping 2.6 per cent.
Demand for black-tie dinner outfits has plummeted as the City cuts back on perceived excess.
But the group said that while a jump in unemployment had dented consumer confidence, Moss Bros was bolstered by a renewed demand for tailored job interview outfits.
Chief executive Brian Brick also said that the group had recently seen a “double-digit” increase in like-for-like sales.
Brick said:“It has turned in the last few weeks to positive, but we don’t want to rush – we want to make sure that this lift materialises.”
Altium Securities analyst David Stoddart said: “The second half appears to have started encouragingly. We are now in a period that compares with the months last year when Lehmans collapsed.”