Signet Jewelers operating income drops £116m

Signet Jewelers has announced that its total operating income for the fiscal year 2020 dropped to $156.4m (£112m) from $318.3m (£228m) as a result of continuous trading disruptions from the Covid-19 pandemic.

The group which operates brands such as H. Samuel and Ernest Jones, saw its total sales for the year ended January 30, 2021 decline by 14.8% to $5.2bn (£3.7bn) from $6.1bn (£4.3bn) the previous year.

However, the company’s e-commerce division did considerably better with sales up 57.9% year over year to $1.2bn (£860m), overall online sales accounted for 22.7% of the total sales, up from 12.2% of sales in the prior year.

Furthermore despite the impact on trading, the group was still able to increase its operating cash flow to $1.4bn (£1bn) with cash and cash equivalents of $1.2bn (£860m) at year end.

Virginia C. Drosos, CEO, Signet Jewelers, said: “Our company today is stronger: we’re more innovative, efficient, and digitally advanced. We are capitalizing on our momentum as we move into the next phase of our growth strategy called ‘Inspiring Brilliance.

“The cornerstone of this strategy will remain centered on our purpose of Inspiring Love and being a catalyst for positive change in our company, industry and community.”