Walker Greenbank slashes debt pile on renewed appetite for luxury furnishings
WALKER Greenbank, the luxury interior furnishings group, yesterday said it had slashed its debt pile after trading strongly over the latter part of the year despite the ongoing tough climate for the upmarket retail sector.
The group, which owns premium fabric and wallpaper brands Zoffany, Harlequin and Sanderson, said it expects to have reduced net debt by almost 50 per cent to £3.2m as at the end of January, due to healthy cash generation.
It added that full year profits should be in line with its expectations, which were upgraded in mid-December after the group said an improving sales trend had continued over the second half of the year.
At the time of Walker Greenbank’s interim results in October, it said first half pre-tax profit had dipped by 67 per cent to £0.57m, hit particularly by a poor performance from its most exclusive brand Zoffany, which was hard hit by customers trading down and cutting spending in the recession.