Furniture brand DFS sitting pretty following 92% order uplift

A national furniture brand has announced plans to resume its dividend after seeing orders almost double compared with 2019.

In its latest update on recent trading through to June 6 2021, furniture specialist DFS has reported a fourth quarter to date (10 weeks) total order intake up by 92.1 per cent on FY19.

Online order intake over the third quarter - while showrooms were closed due to COVID-19 restrictions - was up 222.5 per cent on the prior year.

Tim Stacey, group chief executive, commented: “This performance once again reflects both the underlying resilience of the Group and the tremendous support from our colleagues who have worked with huge dedication and commitment throughout the pandemic.

“Our aim is to lead sofa retailing in the digital age by building a truly Integrated Retail model that allows us to drive market share gains ahead of the competition.

“Looking ahead, we will continue to invest in key strategic initiatives such as our digital channels, our showrooms and our Sofa Delivery Company final mile logistics capability, along with new investment in UK manufacturing and capacity and expansion into other home categories.

“Despite short-term supply chain challenges and a macro environment that’s hard to read, we believe the business is well set for growth, to be delivered in both a responsible and sustainable manner. Given our overall financial position and outlook it is our intention to recommend a full year dividend of 7.5p in September.”