British fashion retailer Next Plc (LON:NXT) reported a better-than-expected performance during the crucial festive period, prompting it to raise its profit outlook for the full year..
**Holiday Period Performance:**.
* **Total Sales Performance:** During the nine weeks to December 24, the company’s total sales, including online and in-store purchases, surged by 4.8% year-over-year. This growth outpaced Next’s guidance of a 2% to 3% increase..
* **Physical Store Sales:** Next’s physical stores experienced a sales growth of 3.2%, rebounding from a decline of 4.1% in the previous year. This improvement was driven by the popularity of occasionwear, with formalwear sales jumping by 18%..
* **Online Sales Performance:** The company’s online sales grew by a modest 6.3% during the festive season, reflecting a normalization of demand after exceptional growth during the pandemic-induced lockdowns..
**Full-Year Guidance Revised:**.
Encouraged by the strong holiday performance, Next upgraded its profit forecast for the fiscal year ending January 2024. The company now expects its pre-tax profit to land between GBP 860 million and GBP 880 million, up from its previous guidance of GBP 840 million to GBP 860 million..
**Full-Price Sales Boost:**.
Next attributed the stronger-than-expected festive sales to a focus on full-price selling rather than discounting. The company stated that it maintained a .
