Royal warrant holder Smythson posts £7m loss as it shuts string of stores

Smythson, the leather goods maker which holds a Royal Warrant, has suffered a £7m loss as it shut a string of shops in an effort to cut costs. The company, whose clients have also included Winston Churchill and the Hollywood star Grace Kelly, warned that inflation, high interest rates and the cost of living crisis have created uncertainty in the luxury goods market. Accounts filed by the company showed sales rose by £3m to £23.7m over the year to April 2, 2023, while pre-tax losses narrowed slightly to £7.3m from £8.5m a year earlier. Smythson said it was forced to shut four stores over the period; on New York’s Madison Avenue, the Royal Exchange in London, Terminal 2 in Heathrow Airport and Bicester Village in Oxfordshire. It has since closed another London store in Westbourne Grove, and is planning to move its New Bond Street store to a new site after previously relocating in 2017. Paolo Porta, chief executive at Smythson, said in the accounts: “Demand in the luxury retail sector remains uncertain, subject to global and local economic conditions resulting from the aftermath of the Covid pandemic, ongoing impact from Ukrainian war and recent increases in interest rates and...

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