Home furnishings and homewares retailer Dunelm has reported a growth in first quarter sales.
According to its latest trading update for the 13-week period ended 28 September 2024, Q1 sales rose 3.5% to £403m, driven by volume and delivered against a strong prior year comparative.
Dunelm’s digital sales growth was strong, up 2ppts as a proportion of total sales to 37%, as it continued to improve its online offer. “Despite some positive lead consumer indicators, we are still seeing volatile trading conditions,” the group said. “Nevertheless, we believe that we continued to gain market share in the quarter.
“Sales growth was broad-based across our categories, reflecting the continued relevance of our wide-ranging customer proposition. Our sofa collections performed especially well, with customers enjoying our curated and colourful ranges, whilst heritage categories such as bedding also proved popular. We also delivered our biggest student campaign yet, where a more stylish assortment and an attractive student discount is bringing The Home of Homes to younger consumers.”
Gross margin in the quarter increased by 20bps year-on-year, with prices broadly stable. Dunelm continues to expect gross margin for FY25 to be between 51% and 52%.
Looking ahead, Dunelm will open its first inner London store in Westfield London before the end of the calendar year, bringing its proposition to a smaller store format, in a high-footfall location. “We remain on track with our plans to open five to ten new superstores this year, broadly split between smaller and larger sites,” the group added.
Nick Wilkinson, Chief Executive Officer, commented: “We have delivered robust sales growth over the first quarter, offering a wide range of products for the home, at outstanding value, and this continues to resonate with new and existing customers. As ever, relevance is central to our offer and we were delighted by the success of our largest student campaign yet, which was well received by customers seeking out bright and stylish designs.
“We continue to make good progress against our strategic plans. Later this year, we will bring our specialist proposition to inner London for the first time, opening at Westfield London. We’re excited about this and our wider opening programme, with five to ten new superstores planned per year over the medium term.
“Whilst we are yet to see meaningful change in underlying consumer sentiment in our markets, we remain focused on our plans. We believe we have continued to gain market share and, with continued strategic progress, remain confident in our ability to reach our next market share milestone of 10% in the medium term.”
