FatFace falls to £3.2m loss following Next takeover

FatFace has fallen to a pre-tax loss of £3.2m in the 35 weeks ended 27 January 2024, down from a profit of £19.5m the prior year, after exceptional costs rose over the period.It comes as the group faced exceptional costs of £7.9m related to integrations following its takeover by Next, which acquired a 97% stake in FatFace in October 2023 for £115.2m. FatFace shortened its latest reporting period to 35 weeks in its latest results to align with Next.

The group still reported a profit of £4.6m from its trading over the 35-week period, according to recent filings on Companies House. 

Over the same period, revenues were £191.6m, having been £205.4m in the comparative prior 35-week period. 

The group noted it has seen a channel shift over the period, with online growth slowing and trade being “much stronger” in stores as customers continued to return to the high street. 

It added that “despite the positive performance during the period, the market continues to face the cost-of-living crisis, the impacts of which are being monitored”, and that it “continues to monitor impacts on pricing, passed onto the customer if absolutely necessary”.  

CEO Will Crumbie said: “Against the backdrop of a challenging external environment, we have delivered a robust performance for the 35-week period. Our focus on full price sales led to an improvement on margin and profit before tax as our beautiful products continue to resonate with our growing market base. 

“During the period we took an important step in FatFace’s journey, announcing our sale to Next in October 2023. This is a testament to the hard work of all colleagues who have built the brand’s strong heritage, products and excellent customer service to emerge even stronger in recent years. Since this announcement, we have continued to focus on our core operations while investing in the integration of our platforms, due to go live in September 2024.”