Unbound Group first-half revenue up 10 percent

Unbound Group, the owner of British footwear retailer Hotter Shoes, has reported a 10 percent increase in revenue in the first half of the year.

In its interim results for the six months to July 31, the group posted revenue of 27.6 million pounds, up from 25 million pounds a year earlier.

It said the growth proved the “benefits of the multi-channel sales model despite challenging market conditions”.

Unbound Group, formerly called Electra Private Equity, repositioned itself earlier this year as an online-first multi-brand retail platform targeted at the 55+ demographic.

The group said it made an EBIT loss of 0.3 million pounds in the first half, which included the costs related to the launch of its new platform.

Gross margin grew 180 basis points to 63.4 percent, which it said was “driven by progress in efficiency plan and delivery of product strategy”.

Hotter Shoes

Looking at Hotter Shoes, the retailer reported year-on-year growth across all channels, with a notably strong performance in retail, which was up 71.6 percent, or up 17 percent when adjusted to Covid-related closures in FY22.

The group said the combination of its UK manufacturing facility and “strengthened” supply chain enabled it to respond to changing consumer behaviour in-season, “which has and will continue to benefit our performance in an unpredictable environment”.

Unbound Group chief executive Ian Watson said the group delivered an “encouraging” first half performance despite “the increased challenges of high inflation and a volatile and unpredictable consumer environment”.

“We have made good strategic progress in H1 and will continue to focus on efficiency gains and cost management in H2 to protect margins,” he said.

The group said it has faced “tougher trading conditions in recent weeks” and that “the short-term outlook is very challenging to predict”.

But it added that its medium term growth objectives remain unchanged.