26 Mar 2010

Hallenstein Glasson declares $8.5m profit

8:12 am on 26 March 2010

Clothing retailer Hallenstein Glasson says says its profit in the six months to January rose by more than half, thanks to stronger sales.

The listed company, which also has stores in Australia, made a profit of $8.5 million, an increase of 56% on the same period a year ago.

Sales at its clothing chains - Hallensteins, Glassons and Storm - rose 7% to $102 million, while margins also rose.

Hallenstein Glasson chairman Warren Bell says the result is a solid step towards getting back to pre-recessionary trading levels.

He says stock levels are where the company wants them to be, the balance sheet remains strong, and the company has re-started its programme to refit stores and open new ones.

The retailer says it's cautiously optimistic about the future.

Sales fell 2% in the first seven weeks of the new financial year compared with a year ago, but the company cautions against reading too much into this, as it says there was strong discounting in the same period last year.

Hallenstein Glasson will pay a dividend of 14 cents a share, up from 10 cents last year.

Shares in the company have fell 5 cents to $3.40 on Thursday morning.