Truworths International expects to report lower first-half earnings due to a drop in sales and a decline in the gross profit margin at Truworths Africa.
The group, which released a business update and voluntary trading statement for the 26 weeks ended December 29 on Friday, said headline earnings per share (HEPS) were expected to be 4%-8% lower at 472c-492c.
Group retail sales for the first 26 weeks of the 2025 financial year increased by 2.4% to R12.5bn. Sales for Truworths Africa, at R8.3bn, were down 1.1%, while those of Office UK rose 11.3% to £180m.
Account sales comprised 47% of group retail sales, with cash sales increasing by 5.3% and account sales decreasing by 0.9%, relative to the prior period, it said.
Truworths Africa reported account sales fell by 0.9% and comprised 70% of the segment’s retail sales for the current period. Cash sales decreased by 1.6%.
Online sales continued to grow, increasing by 38% and contributing 5.8% to Truworths Africa’s retail sales.
The group said that its Office UK segment continued its impressive trading performance, driven by its store modernisation and expansion programme, an e-commerce platform and strong, well-established brand partnerships.
Despite the broader challenges in the UK market, retail sales in the UK segment increased 11.3% in sterling and 9.9% in rand terms.
Online sales increased by 7% and comprised 45.2% of total retail sales.
In November, when it reported sales for the first 18 weeks of its financial year, Truworths noted that trading conditions in SA remained challenging.
The group said in its recent annual report that competition from Shein and Temu — the online value clothing retailers based in China that sell directly to consumers in SA — together with increasing competition from online and traditional retailers were the biggest risks facing the business.
The company also said it would focus on merchandise categories where it was underrepresented to grow market share.
The group will release its interim results on February 27.
With Kabelo Khumalo
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