News roundup--best Christmas at Express Gifts for four years, more

Findel-owned mail order business Express Gifts recorded its strongest Christmas for four years. The gifts catalogue recorded an 11.1 percent sales growth in the 15 weeks to 17th January compared with the same period the previous year.
As sister company Kitbag, sales since the half-year were 2 percent ahead of last year, though margins suffered due to a more aggressive promotional strategy. At Kleeneze, sales declined 1.2 percent in the 15 weeks. Findel also operates a healthcare division, which saw sales for the period since the half-year 12.1 percent ahead of 2010/11, though again, growth came at the expense of margins. Overall, group sales are 1.6 percent ahead of the previous year.

For Scottish retailers, 2011 was the worst Christmas ever. Total sales in December were up 1.6 percent on December 2010. And although this was the best performance since July, it’s the worst December growth since the survey began in 1999. Commenting on the results, David McCorquodale, head of retail in Scotland at KPMG, made this gloomy statement, “Christmas this year came at a real cost to retailers as the discounting was deep, impacting margins, and opening hours were longer, costing more in wages. Several retailers have not made it into the New Year and more shop closures are anticipated in the coming months.”

Outdoor apparel retailer Peak Performance appointed Henrik Bunge, the current managing director of Adidas Group, Nordic, as its chief executive officer. In related news, Tobias Sachs rejoins the business as sales director having previously held sales roles at Peak Performance from 2002 to 2008.