NATIONAL: Noni B's sales for the first quarter of the 2009/10 financial year are up 1.3 per cent on the same period last year.
The womenswear retailer has also predicted its after tax profit for the first half of the financial year will be ahead of last year's $2.5 million figure.
The announcements came today at the retailer's annual general meeting, where Noni B chairman Lynn Wood related the increase in sales to the management and board's three year strategic plan.
Devised 12 months ago in the wake of the closure of the company's 19 La Voca stores, key components of the plan include appealing to a broader customer base and strengthening the appeal of the Liz Jordan label, available exclusively in Noni B stores.
A reduction in inventory levels, the introduction of store promotions and discounts, and cuts to the company's cost base had also helped minimise the impact of the economic downturn on store earnings, Wood said.
"Although confidence among our 40 plus demographic remains fragile, demand seems to have stabilised," Wood revealed.
Noni B joint managing director David Kindl said that the company had chosen to invest extra energy over the last 12 months into stores that were under performing, rather than exit from those sites. This was to ensure the brand retains a foothold in key areas when the economy strengthens, he said.
New store openings were being treated with caution, however.
"We have become... highly selective in choosing new sites, only opening stores where we can obtain a favourable lease. This will continue and, while we expect to open a further four stores between now and June 2010, we also expect to close two," Kindl said.
Noni B currently has 216 stores across Australia.
The results today (October 28) come in the wake of a difficult period for the company. Its total sales revenue for the 2008/09 financial year was $118.2 million, down 7.6 per cent on the previous year. In addition to the closure of its La Voca stores in mid-2008, the company also underwent a raft of executive changes.
Wood today admitted that the company had been hit "particularly hard" during the global financial crisis.