- Candlemaker Dusk Group (DSK) continues to focus on opening new stores as online sales drop in the first half of the 2023 financial year
- Online sales for the first half of FY23 were down 37.8 per cent on the prior corresponding period, but DSK says store sales offset the online decline
- For the 26 week-period ending January 1, the home fragrance retailer recorded total sales of $86.1 million, which it says reflected the addition of nine new stores
- Sales for the first seven weeks of H2 FY23 are down 3 per cent on the same time in FY22, but Dusk says a new product has landed with “robust” early sell-through
- The company declared a fully franked interim dividend of eight cents per share to be paid by March 28
- DSK shares are down 3.74 per cent to $1.80 at 1:35 pm AEDT
Dusk Group (DSK) has flagged an ongoing focus on opening new stores after online sales dropped in the first half of the 2023 financial year.
For the 26 week-period ending January 1, 2023, the home fragrance retailer recorded online sales of $4.8 million — 37.8 per cent lower than the prior corresponding period (pcp).
However, total sales for the period reached $86.1 million, which was a 7.6 per cent increase on the prior corresponding period and a 47 per cent jump from pre-pandemic levels in the first half of FY20.
The company said the sales growth reflected the addition of nine new stores, including three trial stores and a website in New Zealand.
Despite the new stores, inventory was 10.2 per cent below the pcp. The company said it continued to focus on the most efficient uses of capital.
CEO and Managing Director Peter King said the company had delivered a “solid result” in the first half given a challenging trading environment.
Additionally, Mr King said channel mix normalisation continued over the period, with an increase in brick-and-mortar sales more than offsetting the online decline.
Moving forward, the company plans to open six new stores in Australia over the second half of the financial year, five of which are due to open prior to Mothers’ Day peak trade.
Total sales for the first seven weeks of H2 FY23 are down three per cent versus the pcp, but Dusk said the new product had landed and shown “robust” early sell-through.
The company board has declared a fully franked interim dividend of eight cents per share to be paid on March 28.
DSK shares were down 3.74 per cent to $1.80 at 1:35 pm AEDT.
