Announcement

Topps Tiles Plc announced that its adjusted pretax profit target for the financial year ending September has been revised down to "more than £6.5 million", prompting a share price decline of over 6% on 1 July 2026.

Financial Performance

  • Group revenue that includes the CTD brand and assets acquired on 19 August 2024 amounted to £75.6 million in the third quarter of fiscal 2026, representing a 1.8 % decline compared with the same quarter a year earlier. Excluding CTD, revenue was £69.4 million.
  • Like‑for‑like (LFL) revenue was flat year‑on‑year, with the second half of the quarter showing a deterioration relative to the prior period.
  • The “hard surface” extension category recorded a 10.9 % year‑on‑year increase in the third quarter.
  • Online sales contributed a larger share of total turnover, rising 2.3 percentage points versus the half‑year and 3.7 percentage points versus the third quarter of fiscal 2025.

Market and Operational Context

  • The company attributed the shortfall to a macro‑economic environment that has shifted consumer demand toward lower‑priced products and to temporary work stoppages among housebuilders caused by an extreme heatwave, which disrupted trading levels.
  • It expects a six‑month catch‑up in sales, but indicated that the shortfall is unlikely to be fully recovered within the current financial year.
  • Barclays UK Consumer Spend Report showed the broader home‑improvement market fell 2.1 % in April and 1 % in May; June data were not yet available.
  • Trade growth for the quarter was –0.8 % year‑on‑year, also affected by the housebuilder stoppages.

Store Portfolio and Regulatory Actions

  • The CTD brand now operates from 23 stores, down from 31 in the prior year, after commercial pressures and the disposal of four stores following a Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) investigation.
  • CEO Alex Jensen stated that strategic initiatives—including store‑portfolio optimisation, a lower‑cost flexible labour model, and consolidation of head‑office roles—are progressing and that profitability measures are beginning to work, although the economic environment remains challenging.

Outlook

  • Topps Tiles reaffirmed its commitment to self‑help initiatives aimed at improving profitability and long‑term sustainability.