Pets at Home has lower its revenue steerage after the pet care business was knocked by slowing retail demand.
The firm, which runs about 450 retail shops and 440 veterinary practices, stated progress in its retail arm was “not at the levels we had expected” within the latest quarter.
It instructed shareholders that group revenues grew 4.3% 12 months on 12 months over the 12 weeks to January 4, with 4.4% like-for-like progress.
This represented a slowdown after 6.5% whole income progress within the earlier six months.
Pets at Home stated this was largely attributable to its retail business, which reported gross sales progress of three.5% for the quarter.
The firm stated this was “resilient” towards a “very strong performance” over the identical interval final 12 months, however that it was impacted by “soft” demand for equipment, whereas value inflation additionally slowed.
The weaker retail efficiency was partly offset by continued sturdy progress in its vet business, which noticed revenues leap 13.4% over the quarter.
Nevertheless, the group stated it now expects to ship a pre-tax revenue of round £132 million for the present monetary 12 months, having stated in November it was on monitor for £136 million.
Lyssa McGowan, chief government officer, stated: “Our colleagues came together over our peak trading period to deliver a record sales performance, growing against a very strong performance in the prior year.
“While a slower market over peak meant our sales growth didn’t quite hit the levels we expected, the business remains well-positioned to benefit from long-term growth in the sector as we continue to win share and grow volumes across food, and deliver differentiated performance through our unique vets business.
“Our new digital platform is a key foundation of our growth strategy, bringing vastly improved user experience to our consumers and creating opportunities to improve cross-sell into accessories and further grow share of wallet.
“With these foundations now in place, we are well-positioned for the future.”
