Following today’s release of Card Factory’s figures for the six months ending 31 July 2026; Charlotte Chilcott, retail analyst at GlobalData, a leading intelligence and productivity platform, offers her view: “Card Factory has had a steady start to the year, with revenue rising by 5.3% to £260.8m in H1 FY2026/27, as the acquisition of Funky Pigeon helped to offset the decline in store sales. Without the online specialist, group sales would have been flat, which underlines the strategic value of the deal. Funky Pigeon brings an established brand in personalised cards, giving Card Factory the digital scale it had struggled to build organically and lifting online to 6.1% of group revenue from 1.3%, reducing the group’s reliance on high street footfall. Profitability also proved resilient, with adjusted EBITDA up 2.0% to £45.1m. Management’s confidence in full-year profit guidance is supported by UK store like-for-likes (l-f-l) returning to growth at the start of the H2 FY2026/27 period. However, meeting market expectations of £56.7m in full-year adjusted profit before tax will require a slightly stronger second half than last year, making a strong Christmas essential.
“Store performance deteriorated in the first half of the year, with total store sales down 0.7% to £226.0m. This is despite nine net openings, indicating that new space is no longer offsetting weakness across the existing estate. Sales continued to shift away from greeting cards, with party, gift and celebration now accounting for 55.4% of sales, an increase of 2.0 percentage points. Celebration essentials were the standout category, up 7.6% l-f-l, and early signs from Card Factory’s new party range, launched in mid-July, are encouraging, with stores refitted to prioritise party and gifting outperforming the wider estate. Card Factory must accelerate this segmentation rollout and expand its party offer. Cross-merchandising greeting cards alongside party and gifting, supported by the planned loyalty scheme due by the end of FY2026/27, will help turn card visits into larger celebration baskets and drive visit frequency.
“Digital sales rose to £16.0m from £3.2m; however, this growth came entirely from Funky Pigeon, masking a sharp 15.5% l-f-l decline at cardfactory.co.uk, a further deterioration from -11.3% a year earlier. Reinstated brand marketing lifted Funky Pigeon’s new customers by 11%, a well-timed investment ahead of the peak Christmas period. However, the digital adjusted EBITDA loss widened to £3.5m from £1.6m as the group absorbed Funky Pigeon’s costs, and the return on this spend will only become clear if these new customers convert into repeat seasonal orders. Funky Pigeon offers a wide range of gifts, so cardfactory.co.uk’s unique advantage must stem from its connection to physical stores rather than its product selection. Promoting its click & collect service more prominently, particularly for party and celebration essentials, would give the site an omnichannel advantage that online specialists such as Moonpig cannot easily replicate.”
