Don't bank on Mervyn King's help
MAIL order retailer N Brown reported a downturn-defying sales hike yesterday as it criticised the Governor of the Bank of England for damaging consumer confidence.
The plus-sized clothing specialist, whose brands include Simply Be, said sales were up 4 per cent to £364million in the six months to August 27 with profits rising 6 per cent to £45million.
It said booming online and international sales and demand from younger customers for figure‑boosting jeans had offset declining sales from shoppers over the age of 60.
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Chief executive Alan White said: “Our elderly customers read more newspapers where the stories are unremittingly negative on the economy and they become cautious.
The plus-sized clothing specialist said sales were up 4 per cent to £364million in the six months to August 27
“When Mervyn King talks about a 1930s style crisis. That doesn’t help their confidence either.”
Average clothes prices rose 12 per cent to combat higher raw material costs from the Far East. It will increase the number of UK textile suppliers as a result. Shares fell 4¼p to 271½p.
