Briscoe lifts 1Q sales 5.9 percent , offsetting thinner margins on competition, late winter start

Briscoe lifts 1Q sales 5.9 percent , offsetting thinner margins on competition, late winter start
By Paul McBeth May 3 (BusinessDesk) - Briscoe Group, the homeware and sports goods chain controlled by managing director Rod Duke, lifted first-quarter sales 5.9 percent, helping offset weaker gross margins caused by increasing competition among retailers and a late start to winter. Sales rose to $108.6 million in the three months ended April 28, the Auckland-based company said in a statement, with a 5.5 percent lift in homeware and a 6.6 percent gain in sports goods. The increased sales and tight cost controls left the retailer's net profit...