Will Debenhams have a Happy Christmas?
Debenhams faces a real challenge as a brand that has yet to deliver, despite investment and strategic changes made under chief executive officer Michael Sharp whose departure has just been announced.
In their half-year announcement this week, Debenhams did however reveal an overall pre-tax profit increase of 7.3 per cent with an 11.4 per cent increase in online sales when compared to the previous year.
A figure not too dissimilar to House of Fraser, who announced a 6.5 per cent increase in half-year like-for-like sales but with a 30.8 per cent rise in online sales. This could therefore suggest that whilst Debenhams’ profits are growing, they are not out-performing their competitors online.
In the below infographic we explore how likely is it that Debenhams will have a Happy Christmas and their investors a prosperous New Year.
James Hammersley is a founding partner of Good Growth. He is also the co-author of ‘Leading Digital Strategy’, a guide to e-commerce strategy.