Halfords and Mothercare shine amid High St gloom

The High Street enjoyed some all-too-rare good news today as Halfords and Mothercare weathered much of the storm that has battered other retailers.

The pair reported rising profits and lifted their dividends despite the carnage on the High Street that has seen even John Lewis and Marks & Spencer take a hammering.

Halfords, seller of bicycles and gizmos for cars, raised its dividend as it reported 3.2% first-half profits growth to £49.1 million.

Chief executive David Wild said the dividend increase of 5.3% to 5p reflected "continued confidence in our future prospects" despite the recession. Revenues were up 1.6% to £407.1 million in the 26 weeks to 26 September but like-for-like sales were down 1.1%. Wild conceded that the start of the second half "has seen some further slowdown in like-for-like sales performance" as he warned Halfords was "resilient to the downturn, although not immune".

The firm has benefited from commuters ditching cars for bikes. The car-maintenance business is also performing well as drivers spend more on looking after their current motor instead of buying a new one. However, satnav sales have come under pressure as customers rein in spending.

Halfords is looking to expand in eastern Europe after a successful pilot scheme in the Czech Republic.

Maternity and baby goods retailer Mothercare said profits almost doubled in the first half after strong performances from its international and online businesses.

The firm, with more than 900 shops in the UK and abroad, posted profits of £9.5 million for the six months to 30 September against £4.9 million in the same period a year earlier as revenue rose 1% to £359 million. UK like-for-like sales grew by 0.8% during the period, with international sales up 9%. The dividend is up 24% to 4.6p.