Quiz tumbles on profit warning

In the six months to the end of September, Quiz swung to a pre-tax loss of £1.5m from a profit of £1.8m in the same period a year earlier, with revenues down 14% to £42.3m. This reflected challenging prior year comparatives and the impact of inflationary pressures on consumer demand.

UK store and concession revenues fell 11% to £22m, while online revenues were 22% lower at £12.6m. International revenues declined 11% to £7.7m.

Quiz said the widely reported cost-of-living and inflationary pressures have impacted customer demand, and as a result, the near-term outlook is difficult to predict.

For the two months to the end of November, including the Black Friday period, sales totalled £14.1m, down from £16m a year earlier and below management expectations.

"Notwithstanding that the remainder of Quiz's important Christmas trading and January sales periods are still to come, given the shortfall in demand experienced in recent months and the potential for macro pressures continuing to impact consumer demand, the board anticipates that full year revenues will be approximately 6-8% lower than current market expectations," it said.

Consensus expectations are for revenues of £86.4m in the year to the end of March 2024.

As a result, Quiz expects to report a pre-tax loss for the year "materially larger" than previous expectations.

Founder and chief executive Tarak Ramzan said: "This has been a challenging period for many retailers, and we have not been immune to the widely publicised macro headwinds impacting consumer demand.

"Notwithstanding the ongoing pressure on consumers, we have continued to focus on taking the right decisions for our long-term future, including prioritising protecting full-price sales and carefully managing our store portfolio."

At 1220 GMT, the shares were down 15% at 5.90p.