Halfords speeds ahead as sales given boost from Tour de France
Chris Froome and Mark Cavendish might have crashed out of the Tour de France, but sales at Halfords have raced ahead.
The bike-to-car parts retailer yesterday posted a 7.9 per cent jump in like-for-like retail sales in the quarter to 27 June thanks to “exceptional” sales in cycling, which surged 21.3 per cent.
Chief executive Matt Davies said Britain’s “love affair” with cycling continued unabated and that all divisions had enjoyed strong growth, with children’s and premium bikes up 23 and 35 per cent respectively.
“The weather and the favourable timing of Easter has definitely helped us, but the trends we have seen for some time – people building their enthusiasm for cycling – also carried on in the first quarter,” Davies said.
Halfords posted growth across all divisions for the first time in years, with Autocentre like-for-like sales up 4.3 per cent.