British sports retailer Sports Direct is expected to open in Australia through a long term strategic agreement with Australian shoe retailer Accent Group.
Accent said in an ASX announcement that it hoped to complete negotiations with Sports Direct’s parent company Frasers Group in the second half of the 2025 financial year (FY25).
“We continue to expect that at some stage in FY25 (Accent) will announce the rollout of the Sports Direct banner in Australia, both through a physical store network and online website,” E&P Associate analyst Kade Madigan said in a research note.
Accent also said it expected earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) in the first half (H1) of FY25 to be about $80 million, compared with of $72.4 million in the previous corresponding period (pcp) and consensus estimates of $78m for H1 FY25.
The company said the half year forecast included a net positive impact of $3.3 million related to non-recurring items.
Accent, whose brands include Athlete's Foot, Skechers, Vans, Dr. Martens and Platypus, said group “owned” sales, including wholesale sales, increased 4.6% in H1 FY25, and like-for-like sales rose 2.9%, including a 1.8% increase in weeks 21-26.
It blamed the “ongoing promotional trading environment” for a 100-basis point decline in the trading gross margin in the first half.
Group CEO Daniel Agostinelli said sales in the final six weeks of the first half, including Cyber Weekend, grew from the pcp, but slowed compared to the prior 20 weeks as the promotional environment affected the gross margin percentage.
At 2pm AEDT (3am GMT) Accent (ASX: AX1) were trading seven cents (2.97%) lower at $2.31, after ranging between $2.33 and $2.40 and capitalising the company at $1.31 billion.
