(Reuters) -British retailer Pets At Home on Wednesday reported annual underlying pretax profit in line with its expectations, as elevated costs and weak demand for pet accessories continue to weigh down growth.
As living costs still remain elevated, UK consumers have been holding back on discretionary purchases including bringing new pets into their homes, driving down the company’s retail sales.
However, demand for services within its Vet group unit has helped offset broader sales pressures, logging a 13% growth in revenue for the year.
The company reported underlying pre-tax profit of 133 million pounds ($179.2 million) for the year ended March 27, marginally up from 132 million pounds it reported in the prior year.
Pets at Home reiterated its expectation for a subdued consumer backdrop in fiscal year 2026, with underlying pre-tax profit dropping to between 115 million pounds to 125 million pounds.
($1 = 0.7421 pounds)
(Reporting by Yadarisa Shabong and Raechel Thankam Job in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)
