Angling Direct reported higher first-half sales, with UK growth offsetting a weaker European performance, and held up despite a squeezed consumer and a prolonged drought that dented demand.
Receding rivers and drying lakes will have been a real problem for the firm’s customers, but they have managed to keep their heads above water and are on track to meet expectations of £109 million in revenue and £5.7 million in adjusted EBITDA for FY2027.
Group revenue rose 5.1% to £56.4m in the six months to 31 July, driven by a 6.9% increase in UK sales, where store revenue grew 6.4% and online 7.5%.
UK like-for-like sales were up 2.9% against a strong prior-year comparator, helped by growth in its MyAD loyalty scheme, which passed 696,000 members.
The company said the UK performance came despite a sustained drought that hit footfall and seasonal demand.
Europe remained the weak spot, with sales down 30% to £1.8m, though the company said its more disciplined approach, focused on Germany and the Netherlands and aimed at reducing losses, kept the business trading in line with expectations.
Angling Direct opened three new stores, in Crawley, Kettering and Gloucester, taking its estate to 60, and said the tough consumer backdrop could open up further consolidation opportunities in the market. It ended the half with net cash of £14.5m, up from £12.5m, after buying back a further £0.9m of shares, and signalled scope for additional buybacks beyond the amount left in its current programme.
Steve Crowe, CEO of Angling Direct, said: “Despite the well documented challenges to the UK consumer environment, alongside a UK wide drought impacting fish and fisheries I am pleased to report that we have delivered a resilient start to the year, making further progress against our recently upgraded medium-term objectives and gaining further share of the UK angling market.
“UK like-for-like sales grew 2.9%, with our higher ticket categories proving robust – even as fuel prices and a lack of rainfall impact footfall and seasonal demand. While mindful of the ongoing headwinds in the consumer sector, we remain focused on gross margin discipline and cost efficiencies, leveraging our previous investments to deliver consistent earnings growth.
“We remain confident in achieving our full year consensus market expectations and are well positioned to capitalise on the attractive long-term growth opportunities across our markets as we deliver our medium-term objectives.”