New Zealand retail company The Warehouse Group says its latest half-year results reflect “two distinct quarters”.
Group sales fell 4.3 per cent to $1.73 billion for the half year while net profit after tax was down 8.2 per cent to $50.4 million.
Online sales grew by 67.8 per cent in the half, contributing 19.4 per cent of overall sales. Click & Collect sales grew by 79.1 per cent.
Across New Zealand, The Warehouse Group stores lost 23 per cent of their normal trading days while in Auckland stores were closed for 84 days (about 46 per cent of total trading days) due to Covid lockdowns.
Nick Grayston, CEO said the company has been adaptable and responsive to the customers’ needs.
“The first quarter was impacted significantly by a large number of our stores being closed and the second quarter with record sales over the Christmas and summer trading period.
“Ongoing uncertainty created by Covid and the war in Ukraine remain significant impacts for the global economy and our own. Shipping and freight costs, as well as inflation, are also contributing factors for New Zealand,” said Grayston.
The group’s margins were affected by disruptions to the supply chain, increased ocean freight costs and changes in the contributions from its retail brands and product mix as more consumers shopped online.
