Big W continues to be an issue for parent company Woolworths with the department chain reporting a 1.2% decrease in comparable sales on an Easter-adjusted basis for Q3 2018 in its quarterly financial report.
The company reported that its Q3 issues were impacted by the timing of new year's day and the shift in timing of school holidays in NSW.
The company did provide some good news with overall sales increasing by 3.2% to $770 million and comparable sales increasing by 3.3%.
Comparable item growth was reported to be up 4% driven by an increase in items per basket but this growth was offset by a lowering of prices across the range.
However, apparel proved to be a challenge for the brand throughout the period with sales of seasonal stock such as winter apparel performing below expectations in the quarter.
Big W said that this failure to meet expectations in sales was driven by unseasonably warm autumn weather.
Woolworths Group CEO Brad Banducci said the group was looking at Big W as a work and progress and that it would focus on improving their omnichannel experience to drive sales in the future.
“The Big W turnaround is still a work in progress with sales declining marginally on an Easter-adjusted basis in the quarter.
“Our focus for the remainder of FY18 is on delivering consistently good shopping experiences across all stores and days of the week, embedding current strategic initiatives including 'Simpler for Stores' and continuing to improve our digital experience.”