New Look tried to put a gloss yesterday on an eye-watering £234.2m annual loss by claiming that “green shoots” were emerging at the high street fashion chain.
In a performance described as “disastrous” by one commentator and “extremely disappointing” by Alistair McGeorge, the company’s boss, New Look revealed figures that were sharply down on a full-year profit of £16.6m in 2017.
Like-for-like sales — those at stores that have been open for a year or more — fell by 11.4 per cent and online sales dropped by 19.2%. Total turnover dropped by £107m to £1.3bn, amid discounting to clear stock.
In March, New Look’s creditors approved a CVA to reduce rents on its store network, which the retailer said would lead to savings of £40m, and the company closed 60 UK branches, putting almost 1,000 jobs at risk.
