Shoppers snapped up Key Boom Boards from the Early Learning Centre this Christmas, but it wasn’t enough to save owner Mothercare from another steep fall in sales.
The music station — which allows youngsters to sing, drum and DJ — was a rare success for the retailer, whose UK stores open for at least a year saw sales slide 5.9%.
Mothercare signed up Jools Oliver to design the Little Bird clothing range last year but chief executive Simon Calver said the new season will see a bigger emphasis on value ranges. “Prices continue to come down,” he said.
Despite the sales slump, Calver insists his transformation plan is on track. The UK business now operates from 269 stores compared with 311 a year ago as loss-making outlets close.
Mothercare is shifting focus abroad, where it now operates 1129 stores throughout 61 countries and aims to grow space by around 15% a year. In contrast to the UK, the international business is growing sales at a double-digit pace, although stronger markets such as Russia and Turkey are dragged back by weaker sales in Europe. Online sales grew sluggishly,
up 0.9%.
