Johannesburg – Listed tile
retailer Italtile says sales grew 14.7 percent in the 5 months to the end of
November.
In a trading update issued
on Monday, the company noted total sales – including those from additional
stores, increased to R2.9 billion.
Italtile has just changed
CEOs after Nick Booth said he would retire, leaving at the end of next
February, but handing over running the company to former COO Jan Potgieter from
this month.
During the period, Nine
TopT stores were opened, although their full contribution to revenue
will only be reflected in the following six months, the company says.
The group’s retail
operation comprises three brands: Italtile Retail, CTM and TopT.
Like-on-like retail store
turnover grew by 10 percent compared with the previous corresponding period,
with average price inflation estimated at 7.9 percent, Italtile says.
“While trading
conditions remained testing and consumer discretionary spend constrained
during the period, the business benefited from continued improvements
across its operations and a gain in market share.”
In the year to June,
Italtile reported a 16 percent increase in trading profit to R1.05 billion.
System-wide turnover increased by 14 percent to R5.96 billion, up from R5.22bn
reported last year.
Like-for-like revenue at
the retail store level also grew 14 percent compared with total retail growth
of 17 percent.
Basic earnings per share
rose by 16 percent to 87.8 cents per share, from 75.9c per share, while
headline earnings per share increased 21 percent to 86.9c per share, up from
71.6c per share reported in 2015.