Angling Direct sees group revenues rise to £81.7m

Fishing tackle retailer Angling Direct has reported a 10.2% increase in revenue to £81.7m for the year ended 31 January 2024, despite facing a “challenging” consumer landscape and disruption to fishing caused by storms in the final few weeks of FY24.

The group’s UK store sales were up 7.6% to £44.4m underpinned by “stronger” conversion and new store openings.

Meanwhile, its online sales increased 13.5% to £37.2m (FY23: £32.8m) driven in part by a 36.3% increase in European online sales to £4.3m, as the company executed on its strategy of developing its European business proposition and increasing its market share in this jurisdiction.

Its UK online sales also increased by 11.1% to £32.9m, driven by “strong” average transaction value growth and increased customer engagement with MyAD, its loyalty and repeat purchase membership model.

Steve Crowe, CEO of Angling Direct, said: “Angling Direct has continued to gain market share in the UK and Europe, and we believe there are significant further growth opportunities in both markets. The group will continue to invest in its digital and physical footprint in the UK to capture further market share growth, leveraging its strong balance sheet to ensure it is competitively placed as consumer confidence returns. Since the period ended, the UK business has completed one small footprint store acquisition in Crewe and opened one new store in Cannock, alongside committing substantial capital investment to an automated customer order packaging solution for the UK distribution centre.

“The European market creates a significantly larger addressable market, but remains highly competitive, driven by even more intense price competition. Despite this, the group delivered strong growth, whilst retaining pricing discipline, leading to further market share gains, which provides the board with confidence that its European strategy remains appropriate. The group’s prudent investment strategy will be maintained to ensure it is well positioned once markets and consumer confidence stabilise. In January 2024 we committed to our first European store in Utrecht in The Netherlands. The store is scheduled to open during the spring fishing season.”

Looking ahead, Crowe added: “As we progress into FY25, macro expectations for economic growth and consumer spending both remain unpredictable. Alongside other retail businesses, we also face cost increases from higher than anticipated wage and business rates related cost inflation and are mindful of the possibility for supply chain disruption, although we have observed no material impact on stock availability to date.

“The group’s strong pipeline of investment opportunities, coupled with its robust balance sheet and prudent focus on cost control, provides the board with the confidence that the group remains well-positioned to navigate these challenges and achieve further growth through this financial year.”