UK shoe brand Dr Martens reported a fall in first-half profits as direct-to-consumer sales fell in the second quarter but maintained annual revenue guidance and said it would raise prices to offset inflation.
The company, famed for its lace up boots now popular with celebrities, said pre-tax profit fell 5% to £57.9m. Revenue rose 13% to £418.6m, while the dividend was lifted 28% to 1.56p a share.
Dr Martens said it would raise prices by 6% to cover cost inflation and said pricing headroom would increase further as the company continued to invest in its push to lift DTC sales.
“Since the end of H1, DTC trading has been variable on a week-to-week basis. Our peak trading weeks are ahead of us and last year they were impacted by Covid-19 restrictions in EMEA and poor availability in America and Japan,” the company said.
“Wholesale has been strong in H2 so far, including the benefit of the £10m revenue shift in EMEA from September to October, and is underpinned by the orderbook.”
Core earnings in the six months to September 30 were flat at £88m as the company continued to invest to drive growth through new stores, marketing and distribution centres.
DTC revenue rose 21% to £179.8m led by a strong performance from retail, which was up 38% to £91m driven by the accelerated new store opening programme and a consistent recovery in post Covid footfall across both Europe and the US, with a slightly slower recovery profile in Japan.
A net new 16 stores were opened during the half, taking the total number of Dr Martens own stores to 174.
Ecommerce grew 8% to £88.8m as consumers returned to physical shopping after the lifting of global Covid-19 restrictions. Online sales were also hit by lockdowns in Shanghai in the first quarter where the company’s distribution centre is located.
