Pepco Group delivers Q1 sales growth of 27 percent

Pan-European variety discount retailer, Pepco Group, owner of the Pepco and Dealz brands in Europe and Poundland in the UK, reported first quarter revenues of 1,654 million euros, up 27 percent on a constant currency basis and 24 percent on an actual basis.

Group Q1 like-for-like (LFL) growth was 13 percent on a constant currency basis, with all brands delivering strong growth. The company said Pepco sales were up 19.7 percent LFL, while Poundland Group sales increased 4.4 percent LFL.

Commenting on the results, Trevor Masters, CEO of Pepco Group, said: “We had a very successful Christmas trading period with record trading days at each of our brands, as we continued to outperform the wider market across Europe.”

“We have seen a strong performance in Western Europe, particularly in Italy and in Spain. We had a strong opening in Greece this quarter and we are looking forward to launching in Portugal in spring 2023. In addition, we are excited about the prospects for Dealz in Poland, where we continue to expand rapidly with 16 new stores added this quarter,” Masters added.

The company opened 105 new stores so far this year and remains on track to deliver the target of 550 net new stores in FY23.

Pepco Group opened a new store in Greece in October 2022 and now has eight stores in the market. Pepco brands witnessed 100 new store openings in Q1, including 15 in Spain which have been converted from Dealz into Pepco.

Poundland Group store estate increased by five stores with 25 new stores opened, of which the majority were in Dealz Poland; whilst 20 Dealz stores in Spain were closed and converted into Pepco.

The company added that while trading conditions continue to be challenging, it is confident in the structural advantages of its discount customer proposition and our continued strategic progress. Assuming the macro trading environment, the company remains on track for another year of consistent performance, with an increased store opening target and robust underlying like-for-like for Pepco, Poundland and Dealz Poland. The group anticipates EBITDA growth on an IFRS16 basis, and assuming constant FX rates, will be in the mid-teens for FY23.