Mulberry Group PLC on Wednesday reported a fall in its annual profit despite revenue rising and noted higher revenue at the start of the new year compared to last year.

The luxury goods company reported revenue of £159.1 million for the year ended on April 1, up 4.4% from £152.4 million the year before.

UK retails sales were down to £87.7 million from £88.5 million the year before as the first half of the year was impacted by the ‘broader economic environment, however performance improved in the second half’, the firm said.

However, pretax profit decreased by 3.8% to £13.2 million from £21.3 million, as operating profit dropped to £17.0 million from £24.6 million the year before. It also incurred an impairment charge relating to intangibles of £2.4 million, compared to none the year before.

Mulberry noted impairment reversals for our Bond Street and Regent Street stores of £14.8 million, as a result of the closure of Bond Street in February.

Overall margin was maintained roughly at 71.2%, compared to 71.7% the year before.

Chief Executive Officer Thierry Andretta said: ‘We have delivered a positive group performance this year thanks to our unique brand identity, beautiful innovative products and market-leading omni-channel proposition. We are well set for the year ahead with the right strategy in place to deliver on our growth plans.’

It declared a final dividend of 1.0 pence per share for financial 2023, down 67% from 3.0p the year prior.

Looking ahead, the company said revenue for the 12 weeks of the new financial year is 6.0% ahead of last year.

Shares were up 3.2% at 260.00 pence each on Wednesday afternoon in London.

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