Mothercare spurns Black Friday as turnaround hits bump

Mothercare boss Mark Newton-Jones today predicted UK retailers would soon give up on one-day sales bonanza Black Friday, as he admitted the mother-and-baby chain’s turnaround had stuttered.

Newton-Jones said the margin-eroding event, set to take place tomorrow, would “wither on the vine” in a few years once the industry realises it’s “not clever to mark down in the busiest week of the year”.

The event comes when stores and distribution networks are already under strain.

Despite weak UK sales in its first half, Newton-Jones said Mothercare would not slash prices across the board and instead reduce prices on selected ranges of long-held stock.

In the UK, Mothercare same-store sales slipped 0.7% in the six months to October 8 and losses widened to £8.8 million, with Newton-Jones blaming unpredictable weather for driving down footfall.

The problem was exacerbated after upgrades to its warehouse reduced the flow of products to stores in the summer.

The troubled international business improved, with many markets returning to growth. Profits from the division fell just 4% at £20.8 million.

Newton-Jones, who has been trying to revive Mothercare by refurbishing stores and growing online sales, said the turnaround “hit a bump in a road” but sales have since returned to normal levels.

However, progress anticipated in the second half was forecast to only partially compensate for weakness in the first and the shares fell 6p to 105.5p.