Sales are down at Topps Tiles, the Leicester-based tile specialist, according to a new trading update for the 52-week period ended 28 September 2024.
Group sales for the year, excluding revenues from the assets acquired from the administrators of CTD, were approximately £248 million, a decline of 5.7% from the Group record high of £263 million reported in the previous year and broadly in line with the year ending September 2022.
Group sales in the fourth quarter were 4.4% lower, a slight improvement on the trends seen across the rest of the year, largely reflecting the weaker comparatives from the end of FY23.
Topps Tiles noted that the trading environment remained “very challenging across the whole year with continued weak demand in the domestic Repair, Maintenance and Improvement (RMI) sector, especially for bigger ticket projects.” Topps believes that the market has declined by 10-15% year-on year.
In August 2024, the business announced the acquisition of the CTD Tiles brand, certain assets, direct selling teams and 30 stores for £9 million. Following receipt of an initial information request from the Competition and Markets Authority, Topps has now been informed by the CMA that it intends to review the acquisition under UK merger control.
Rob Parker, Topps Group CEO, said: “We remain focused on the delivery of our new Mission 365 goal. In a year that has proved challenging in many ways, I am pleased by how well our teams have responded to the weaker market, demonstrating both our resilience and our ability to continue to outperform.
“I am also satisfied that despite these challenges we have been able to continue to deliver against our strategy and take opportunities as they have arisen, supported by our strong balance sheet.
“Looking ahead, macro-economic indicators point to a stronger market in 2025. While the timing and trajectory of the recovery remains hard to predict, we are confident that our clearly articulated and proven strategy will enable the further development of the Group in all market conditions.”
