Brown Thomas to open two new stores in €15m plan

Brown Thomas owner Mr Galen Weston revealed yesterday that the retail group plans to spend €15 million over the next year on an expansion that will include opening two new stores and re-entering the food market.

The Canadian businessman told The Irish Times that the group had lined up locations in Galway and at Dundrum shopping centre, Dublin for its designer/youth spin-off, BT2.

The group also plans to double the size of its middle-market chain, A-Wear, over the next five years. That business has 17 outlets on both sides of the Border.

At the same time, he said the group plans a major revamp of its flagship Brown Thomas store on Dublin's Grafton Street.

Mr Weston said the work was one-third of the way through. It would lead to a better use of the store's floor space and enable the store to add to its current range, which is largely focused on fashion.

"We're moving into homewares in a much more substantial way and we will have some food," he said. He added that it would carry speciality foods.

Brown Thomas exited the food market when it moved its original Dublin store from the building which Marks & Spencer now occupies on Grafton Street to its old Switzer's premises across the street in early 1995.

Mr Weston said the group planned to spend around €15 million on its development plans next year, but added that this figure would be finalised at the group's annual meeting next week.

Brown Thomas group is well positioned to spend money on developing its business. The company owns its properties, and is not saddled with high rent. Its accounts show that it cleared almost €10 million in bank debts in the 56-week period to February 3rd, 2002.

Mr Weston said that figure accounted for most of its long-term borrowings. This contributed to a near 250 per cent leap in net cash flow in the 12 months to February 2nd this year to €30.75 million. It had almost €5 million in the bank at the end of the period.

However, Mr Weston said yesterday that profit growth was soft, running at 4-5 per cent year-on-year for 2003, compared with 17-18 per cent at the end of the 1990s. He said the company wanted to return to 15 per cent annual growth in the next 12-18 months.

Its most recent figures show annual operating earnings were flat at €18.8 million compared with €19 million for the previous 56-week period.

Total savings of €1.4 million across its interest and tax bills accounted for profit growth of roughly 7 per cent to €15.5 million from €14.3 million.

Mr Weston owns Brown Thomas through his private family-owned company, Wittington Investments.

He visited Dublin yesterday with his wife, Ms Hilary Weston, and daughter, Ms Alannah Weston, who are both heavily involved in running the Weston family businesses. Ms Alannah Weston is a director of Brown Thomas Group.

Wittington Investment took over British chain Selfridges for €867 million last summer and also owns Holt Renfrew in Canada.

Mr Weston is chairman and president of George Weston and chairman and director of Loblaw Industries, respectively Canada's biggest food production and distribution companies.