LONDON (Reuters) – Kesa Electricals, Europe’s third largest electricals retailer, has revealed weak sales for the key Christmas period in its core French market but says it expects to deliver full-year profits in line with forecasts
Kesa KESA.L said on Tuesday its French market leader Darty, which is battling weak consumer demand, saw like-for-like sales growth of just 0.3 percent in the period November 2 to January 3.
In contrast, Britain’s second biggest chain Comet, also owned by Kesa, achieved 3.9 percent growth excluding warranty sales, better than analysts had predicted.
That compares with 4.7 percent growth for Darty in the third quarter up to November 1 and 3.7 percent for Comet.
Group sales were up 10.8 percent in total during the period or 4.5 percent when measured in local currency.
Gross profit margin was slightly reduced however, partly because of a fall in the sale of extended warranties, which have been hit by negative publicity in the UK. Analysts estimate the sale of warranties, soon to be under tighter regulation, could contribute as much as 80 percent of Comet’s profits.
Chief Executive Jean-Noel Labroue remained upbeat.
“The positive sales trend seen in December has continued into January and, with our continued programme of cost control, we are confident that we will deliver results in line with market expectations.”