Quiz swings to profit as revenues recover from pandemic hit

Fast-fashion retailer Quiz said on Tuesday that it swung back to full-year profit as revenues were boosted by the removal of Covid restrictions.

In the year to the end of March, the company swung to a pre-tax profit of £800,000 from a loss of £9.6m the year before, on revenues of £78.4m, up from £39.7m a year earlier.

"The lifting of social restrictions resulted in sales progressively improving during the year and by the second half they had returned to the levels achieved prior to the disruption caused by Covid 19 on a like-for like basis," Quiz said.

The jump in revenues was also due to the fact that stores and concessions were not closed for the same sustained periods as the previous year, while the return of social events drove increased demand for the occasion wear and dressy wear "which are at the centre of the Quiz brand".

However, Quiz also warned there was potential for sales later in the year to be dented by the effect of the inflationary environment and the cost-of-living crisis.

Founder and chief executive Tarak Ramzan said: "The group delivered a very encouraging FY 2022 performance with very strong revenue growth and a return to profitability. This outcome reflects increased demand for Quiz’s product offering and was supported by the decisive actions we have taken in recent years to transform the business and successfully leverage the group's omni-channel model and infrastructure.

"We are very pleased with the strong uplift in active customers and sales growth through our own website, which is now supported by a flexible and profitable portfolio of stores and concessions."

Ramzan said that despite the well-documented challenges across the retail sector, the company remains encouraged by customer demand for the brand, with sales up by 62% in the year to date.

"Whilst there are significant levels of uncertainty impacting the consumer right now, we are confident that Quiz is well positioned to continue to deliver against its strategy and drive long-term, sustainable and profitable growth," he said.

At 0835 BST, the shares were up 6.7% at 10.94p.