Card Factory grew its total sales by 6.7% in the nine months to October 31st as it opened 38 new stores across the UK. The company said a strong first half sales performance continued in the third quarter, driven mainly by growth in lower margin non-card categories.
Card Factory's chief executive, Karen Hubbard said: "As previously stated, the business faces ongoing external pressures such as foreign exchange and national living wage, which will continue to impact our margin for the remainder of the year and into FY19, despite the mitigation initiatives we have put in place.
"Nevertheless, we go into the important final quarter with an exciting and extended Christmas offer and remain confident that our quality and value credentials will continue to resonate well with our customers, with the added benefit of EPOS and contactless in every store."
Card Factory said it is on track to open around 50 net new UK stores in the current financial year and has started to build a pipeline of new store opportunities for the coming year.
