British consumers, squeezed by higher borrowing costs and distracted by the early signs of summer, are putting off buying big-ticket home furnishings.

ScS Upholstery, the sofa specialist, reported yesterday that like-for-like sales had plunged over the past six months.

The figures cover the crucial Easter bank holiday weekend, when shoppers traditionally purchase expensive products such as soft furnishing, carpets and kitchens.

The Sunderland-based company said that revenue had declined by 9 per cent in the six months to March 31, owing to the warm weather and the “difficult trading environment generally”.

Shares in ScS fell 10.34 per cent, or 41p, to 355½p.

ScS’s downbeat statement came after a profit warning issued in February, when it said that sales after Christmas had declined after initially making a strong start to the year.

This week, Carpetright, the flooring specialist, gave warning on profits after like-for-like sales in its UK and Republic of Ireland stores fell by 5.2 per cent in the ten weeks to April 12.

The company blamed the decline on the Bank of England’s decision to increase interest rates in January by a quarter-point to 5.25 per cent, adding to previous rises in borrowing costs in August and November last year.

Richard Ratner, a retail analyst at Seymour Pierce, said that retailers had experienced mixed results from trading over Easter. He added: “It is a question of whether it really is the beginning of a fall-off in big-ticket sales, and is it a result of the weather, the interest rate or a combination of the two?”

This year, Land of Leather, the purveyor of wipe-clean couches, said that the increase in interest rates had affected its postChristmas revenue. Its like-for-like sales fell by 4.9 per cent, compared with a 10.5 per cent increase in the same period a year ago.

However, strong sales before Christmas helped to boost its interim revenues by 22 per cent to £115.8 million.

DIY businesses, such as Homebase and B&Q, have recorded thriving sales of other big-ticket products such as kitchens and bathrooms since the beginning of the year. Homeowners have also been investing in outdoor furniture as the weather conditions improve.

However, Mr Ratner said that he was seeing anecdotal evidence that kitchen and bath-room sales had slowed over the Easter period.

Despite the fall in like-for-like sales, ScS said that sales including new shops opened over the past six months grew by 11 per cent, compared with the same period last year. Full-year pretax profits for the year are now expected to reach £9.5 million compared with a previous forecast of £11 million.

To the barricades?

ScS uses Martin Kemp, left, the bassist with 1980’s pop group Spandau Ballet and a former actor in EastEnders, to front its advertising campaign. His contract with ScS runs out at the end of the year. David Knight, the chief executive at ScS, said: “We will meet in the summer to see if he wants to continue or whether we want to continue with him.” Mr Kemp has changed agents in the past two months, from AIM, which negotiated the contract with ScS, to Ken McReddie Ltd. AIM was unavailable for comment. Ken McReddie Ltd declined to comment.

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