Footasylum trips up as it swings to £4 million loss

Sportswear seller Footasylum’s punishing start to life as a listed company took another tough turn on Tuesday as it slumped into the red.

The retailer, which floated on London’s junior AIM market in November, posted a loss of £4 million for the six months to August 25, compared with pre-tax profits of £2.3 million the year before.

Footasylum was forced to slash prices to shift its wares and continued to invest in the business, it said. It will now open two shops a year, down from four, in the next few years “to conserve cash” and focus on refurbishing and expanding some of its existing 66 stores.

Executive chairman Barry Bown said: “A retailer has to do what a retailer has to do to move [the business] to a better place.”

Revenues, however, were up to £98.6 million from £83.2 million. The shares, which floated at 164p last November, fell 2.5p to 29.9p on Tuesday.

Footasylum, which will open stores in both of London’s Westfield shopping centres this autumn, shocked the City with a second profit warning in September.