Some of the gloom hanging over the high street was lifted by one of its stalwarts yesterday as Next increased its annual profit forecast after a feared slowdown in summer sales failed to materialise.
Lord Wolfson of Aspley Guise, chief executive of the FTSE 100 fashion retailer, said that sales had held firm over the past two months, despite concerns that they would slump in the wake of a prolonged heatwave.
Next, one of Britain’s biggest clothing retailers, is seen as a bellwether for the health of the wider retail sector. Launched in 1982 by Terence Conran and George Davies, the £7bn company now has more than 500 stores in Britain and Ireland and about 200 overseas, with 44,000 employees.
