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Shoe Zone PLC shares slid on Tuesday as it scrapped its dividend and reported a dive in earnings, which it expects to continue in the new financial year. Shares in Shoe Zone were down 16% at 57.00 pence on Tuesday morning in London. The Leicester, England-based footwear retailer said pretax profit plunged 68% to £3.3 million in the 12 months to September 27 from £10.1 million a year prior. Revenue was down 7.6% at £149.1 million from £161.3 million, while cost of sales fell 3.5% to £121.5 million from £125.8 million. Shoe Zone said store revenue slid 10% to £113.1 million from £126.1 million, while digital revenue edged up 2.3% to £36.0 million from £35.2 million. The board did not declare a dividend, down from 2.5 pence per share last year. However, it said net cash increased by 64% to £5.9 million from £3.6 million. The firm said it had 269 stores at the end of September, down from 297 a year prior. It reported 11 relocations, 6 refits and 39 closures during the period. ‘This was a challenging year, particularly in the second half, as consumer confidence declined further following the government’s October 2024 budget, and highly adverse fiscal policies,’ said Chair Charles Smith. ‘Persistent inflation, higher interest rates, and reduced disposable income contributed to negative economic and consumer sentiment in the UK. Sales were good when there was a reason to buy, such as the warm summer and the back-to-school period, however, discretionary spending remained subdued as consumers exercised greater caution in what they were spending money on.’ Looking ahead, Shoe Zone said it expects trading conditions to ‘remain challenging’ due to macro-economic pressure and higher wages. It expects pretax profit to fall to around £1.0 million for the 12 months to October 3. The firm said revenue was down on forecasts in the first quarter of the new financial year ‘reflecting ongoing macro-economic pressures that continue to weigh on consumer confidence resulting in lower footfall on the UK high street, alongside the highly adverse government fiscal policies’. ‘The government’s November 2025 budget included an additional increase in the national living wage, raising our cost base further, with broader measures not materially improving consumer sentiment,’ said Chair Smith. Copyright 2026 Alliance News Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
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