Following today’s release of DFS’ figures for the 52 weeks ending 29 June 2025; Matt Walton, senior retail analyst at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers his view: “DFS has rebounded from a challenging FY2023/24, which was impacted by weak consumer confidence, to record strong performances across the board and significantly outperform the furniture market in its FY2024/25. Order intake remained consistent with its first half to grow by 10% for the year, supported by a strong Winter Sale period as well as going up against soft comparatives from January and February. This is impressive considering that the comparative for the final three months was +9%. Gross sales were 5.8% up, lower than order uptake as shoppers shifted to ranges with longer lead times. This is a marked improvement though from its H1, when sales only grew by 1.8%, with its H2 sales up 10.3% as the order book from the end of its H1 and Winter Sale unwound. This sales boost has filtered down into its bottom line with profit before tax being slightly ahead of analyst expectations of £25-29m.
“Sofology remained the better performing fascia, with its order uptake being 16.2% compared to 8.7% at DFS. This further reiterates that Sofology has found the right balance between being more price competitive, though its prices remain above DFS, while still being aspirational. Its more design-led offer also enables it to tap into the greater demand for buying into a new look. The future remains bright for Sofology as its core customer is more able to spend on big-ticket items. This will be supported by the retailer continuing to improve its store environment, with its first store refreshes since 2017, and it plans to open a further 10-15 stores that DFS does not anticipate cannibalising sales from existing outlets.
“A greater proportion of orders having longer lead times also means that DFS is entering its FY2025/26 with a stronger order book, maintaining this momentum to start, but its upcoming financial year will likely be challenging. Consumer confidence remains brittle as many consumers’ discretionary incomes are still under pressure. The momentum in the housing market, a spur for upholstery purchases, has slowed due in part due to the changes in stamp duty from April 2025. It will also be going against tougher comparatives from late 2025 onwards due to last year’s uplift in orders weighted towards the end of the year as pent-up demand was released following last year’s autumn Budget. With its core offer being more stabilised now, DFS can focus on gaining greater traction in bedroom and other furniture sectors to support performance.”
