Quiz trading conditions remain 'challenging'

Fast-fashion retailer Quiz - which has already issued two profit warnings this year - cautioned on Wednesday that trading remains difficult, with footfall down on last year.

In an update ahead of its annual general meeting, it said the "challenging" trading conditions reported back in June have persisted over the summer.

"Consistent with the widely reported conditions on the UK high street, the business has experienced a reduction in store footfall during the period compared to the previous year when the group experienced particularly strong demand," the company said. "The group's performance has continued to benefit from sales growth through Quiz's own websites."

While trading conditions are expected to remain difficult, Quiz expressed confidence that it can return to sustainable profitable growth in the medium term thanks to its "flexible business model and increasing online focus".

Quiz shares tanked in March as it issued its second profit warning of the year, downgrading its full-year group earnings expectations to £4.5m from £8.2m. The company had already warned on profits in January after a difficult Christmas period, which saw sales fall short of its expectations.

At 1240 BST, the shares were down 8.4% at 16.94p.