UK retailer ScS sees surge in online orders, sales hit £116.6m

ScS has raised its outlook for this financial year and the next as it has seen a surge in orders since stores reopened following the third national lockdown .

The furniture retailer , which has 100 stores in the UK , said like-for-like orders were 79% higher than pre-pandemic levels in 2019 between April and June 12, driven by the reopening of non-essential stores which began on April 12 in England and Wales.

The group said sales were £116.6m in the year to June 12 , 50% higher than a year ago. ScS shares surged 10% after the retailer announced its results for the year to July 31 would beat expectations and that it was also set for a “substantially better” turnaround in 2021-2022 .

It also cheered investors by recommencing dividends with an interim payout of 3p per share , and it also said it had repaid £3m of worker furlough support as trading proved resilient.

Home furnishing retailers are enjoying booming trade as Britons turn to remodeling their homes during the lengthy lockdown with little else to spend their money on.

Rival retailer DFS recently said its orders in the past 10 weeks since stores reopened had almost doubled compared with 2019. ScS also said online orders had been strong throughout the year, up 95.3% so far this year and 165% above 2019 levels, as stores were disrupted by lockdown closures.

And the launch of its new website has also helped boost online trading. “The board is encouraged by the group’s strong trading performance since reopening,” ScS said.

“While some uncertainty remains in relation to the end of all Covid restrictions, the board believes that the group is well placed to maximise growth opportunities.”

New CEO Steve Carson now takes over the day-to-day operations of ScS following the handover from predecessor David Knight, who added that Knight remains available to provide support when required.

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