RISING PRICES HAMMER BONMARCHE

RISING prices ate into earnings at Bonmarche as the chain posted a slump in fullyear profits.

The womenswear retailer said the market had been more challenging than expected and uncertainty following the EU referendum had caused its profits to tumble 39.4pc to £5.8m in the year to April.

Sales across stores open for more than a year sank 4.3pc while overall sales nudged up 1pc to £190.1m.

Despite the disappointing results, chief executive Helen Connolly said the business can grow and customers had responded well to the chain’s renewed product focus.

In November the retailer revealed it would be targeting a shopper it called Lisa, who feels ten years younger than she is, and Connolly said the strategy had begun to take off.

She said a combination of ‘internal and external factors over the past year prevented us from improving at the rate we had aimed for’ but added that Bonmarche’s ‘direction of travel is broadly right’.