HIGH street fashion chain Next shrugged off fears that the hot weather would have dried up summer sales as it beat City forecasts with a six per cent rise in profits.
New outlets in Gateshead, Nottingham, Chester, Croydon and Dudley drove profits.
The chain, which has 352 branches across the UK and Ireland as well as a catalogue business, said like-for-like sales in stores which have been trading for more than a year grew by 1.8 per cent during the six months to the end of July.
But that rate slowed to only 0.8 per cent in the six weeks since August 2. Nevertheless, finance director David Keens said issues such as store openings were as significant as the weather in affecting like-for-like sales.
He said: "It is a short-term thing and you have to trade through it. Retailers and farmers are far too quick to blame the weather and never praise it."
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