Blacks Leisure recovery helped by boardwear closure
11/01/2010
UK-based outdoor specialist Blacks Leisure believes its decision to go back to basics may have been behind recent signs of recovery. According to chief executive Neil Gillis, the firm is now on a "much stronger footing" following solid sales over the Christmas period, with the colder weather prompting higher sales.
Back in November the company closed 87 of its loss-making stores after coming to a rescue plan agreement with its creditors. The group now has 208 Millets stores, 92 Blacks stores and 13 Freespirit stores. Comparable store sales for the six-month period ended January 7 rose 12% compared with the prior-year period and sales over the six-week Christmas period rose 15.2%.
One of the turning points, according to Mr Gillis, was closing its O’Neill stores. "What had gone wrong with the business was that it had branched out into a sector called boardwear, which is surf clothing, and a lot of what we closed was connected to that," he said. "The business had diversified; it had got into the wrong kind of markets. We have gone back to the core markets."Share this story:
