Q&A: SuperGroup boss Julian Dunkerton and chief financial officer Chas Howes

Retail Week: Was the slowdown in sales growth simply down to the warehouse glitch or has the tough trading conditions taken its toll on Supergroup’s sales?

Julian Dunkerton: It was the warehouse issue. We were missing sizes which we’re now sorting.

Chas Howes: The decline correlates with the warehouse problems so the only thing we can put it down to is that.

RW: But you’re wholesale business which was largely unaffected by the glitch experienced a slowdown in sales growth too.

CH: It’s a timing issue. We were against a period of strong growth last year where we grew 98%.

RW: When will the warehouse glitch be fully rectified?

JD: We’re already down the road to normality. We should [have rectified the issue]by the end of November, before peak Christmas trading.

RW: What is SuperGroup’s outlook for Christmas?

JD: The product is strong, autumn winter is selling well. I can’t say we’re going to grow 95% like last year but good product will always do well.

RW: How is SuperGroup’s expansion plan progressing?

JD: We added 12 stores in the first half and are confident of reaching 20 for the year.

RW: And what about Europe?

It’s progressing well. We’ve opened 21 stores so far this year and should get to 50 by the end of the year.

RW: How is the Regent Street flagship progressing?

JD: It will be opening this financial year and there is a possibility that the first floor will open pre-Christmas. We’re hopeful that it will.

RW: What should we expect from the flagship?

JD: It will look spectacular. Our store design has moved on – we’ve had a massive design input in this store.

It’s exciting what we can do with as large a space. We can experiment with product; we’re creating product especially for that store. We’re moving into territories we haven’t been. As well as the tailoring, we’ll be expanding our range in every product group. This will show exactly what this brand can be.