Quiz losses widen as Covid measures dent revenues

In the year to the end of March, the underlying pre-tax loss widened to £9.6m from £3.1m the year before, with revenues down 66% to £39.7m. The company said this was due in large part to the "significant" impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on trading conditions, including the enforced closure of stores and concessions.

The gross margin fell to 53.4% from 60.3% reflecting an increased level of discounting, partly due to stores and concessions closures.

Quiz said that given the losses incurred, it is not recommending a final dividend.

The retailer struck a more upbeat note on current trading, however, pointing to increasing demand for its core product offering as restrictions on events and social gatherings have ended.

"This is driving a return towards the revenues generated prior to the pandemic on a like-for-like basis," it said.

Founder and chief executive Tarak Ramzan said: "Against a backdrop of highly challenging trading conditions during the year, including the enforced closures of stores and concessions for substantial periods and the cancellation of social events that are a key driver for demand of Quiz’s trademark occasion wear, we have taken decisive actions to position the business to return to long-term profitable growth, including reducing the size of our store estate, decreasing costs, and maintaining very tight cash management.

"We have continued to invest in our own e-commerce channels as we optimise our omni-channel model. We remain confident in the strength and appeal of Quiz as an occasion wear led brand, as has been evidenced by the increase in demand and positive trends across our operational KPIs as social events returned during the summer. This continues to underpin the board’s confidence in our ability to continue to improve performance and achieve profitable growth as more normal trading patterns return."

At 0920 BST, the shares were down 20% at 19.44p.