British handbag maker Mulberry said its switch to more affordable prices had sent sales up strongly at the start of its new fiscal year after its ill-fated move upmarket resulted in a 74% collapse in full-year profit.
Mulberry has spent the past year sprucing up its ranges and reconnecting with its lower priced roots after a move to a more exclusive luxury position backfired.
This prompted a string of profit warnings and the exit of chief executive Bruno Guillon.
A tighter grip on costs and a strategy u-turn which helped revive sales since November has boosted Mulberry's shares.
But the damage of its ill-fated push upmarket was laid bare in its adjusted pretax profit for the year to March 31, which fell 74% to £4.5m.
That was slightly ahead of forecasts of £4m.
Retail revenue, helped by a strengthened range of more affordable but lower margin £500-1,000 priced bags, grew 1% but was more than wiped out by a 29% fall in wholesale sales.
The group said its new, expanded cheaper ranges had helped total retail sales rise 17% for the 10 weeks to June 6.
"I am pleased that the strategy we approved as a board last year is beginning to bear fruit," said new CEO Thierry Andretta, who joined in April.
