Sales lift at Watches of Switzerland as its shrugs off Omicron impact
10 February 2022, 13:14
Shares in the retailer moved higher after it said it is set to meet the top end of its profits guidance.
Watches of Switzerland has posted a jump in sales over the latest quarter after hailing strong demand in the UK and US.
Shares in the retailer moved higher after it told shareholders it is set to meet the top end of its profits guidance following the resilient performance.
Brian Duffy, chief executive of the business, told the PA news agency that the spread of the Omicron variant “barely” had an impact on trading as he cheered positive Christmas sales.
Watches of Switzerland reported that group revenues increased by 27.9% to £348.1 million in the three months to the end of January, compared with the same period last year.
The retailer said demand for luxury watches in the UK was “very strong” over the period, with luxury watch sales increasing by 15.2% in the region over the quarter.
Sales of other luxury jewellery increased by 88.4% for the quarter as it hailed the benefit of its acquisition of Betteridge boutiques in the US last year.
Total US revenues increased by 44.6% to £124.6 million over the quarter.
Mr Duffy also said that demand for some brands of watches was noticeably ahead of supply but said he has no concerns over the stock of products it is able to sell in its stores and online.
“We are glad demand is so high. We don’t see it as an issue really,” he told PA. “We have a really good relationship with the suppliers and where there is most demand have been able to set up waiting lists for customers.”
The company said it now expects both sales and profits for the full financial year to be at the higher end of forecasts it upgraded in November.
Mr Duffy added: “Strong trading to date, revised pricing by certain brands and visibility of supply for calendar 2022 all support our expectation to perform towards the top end of our full-year guidance.
“Demand in our category continues to outstrip supply and we remain confident in the future of our business and achieving the goals laid out in our long-range plan.”
Shares in the firm moved 1.7% higher in early trading.
