Very Group fashion sales fall, yet retail sales rise elsewhere

The Very Group has reported its trading for the Christmas and Black Friday period, spanning seven weeks to 22 December 2023, during which it saw UK retail sales grow 3.4 percent year-on-year.

The performance, which the company said was “consistently ahead of the UK online non-food retail market”, also represented a growth in market share over the period, and was largely led by toys, gifts and beauty, for which sales rose 8.8 percent YoY.

While for these categories, as well as electrics, sales were on the up, the same could not be said for the group’s home and fashion divisions, where sales fell 2.9 percent and 3.9 percent, respectively.

For fashion, however, Very did report “good growth” in the realm of premium fashion, for which sales had increased 14.7 percent YoY.

For the group as a whole, which also includes Littlewoods and Very Ireland, sales rose 2.1 percent, led by an elevated product range, strong pricing, marketing campaigns and an improved online experience.

This was noted by group CEO, Lionel Desclée, who said in a release: “As expected in the current economic climate, consumers were on the lookout for amazing deals. We served these to existing customers and plenty of new customers during our Black Friday campaign with games consoles, wireless earbuds and perfume among our best sellers.

“Whilst we are pleased with these results, we also know that the year ahead will be challenging for all retailers. However, our operating model, which combines multi-category digital retail and flexible ways to pay, will remain resilient and continue to provide families with a one-stop-shop for everything they need.”