Plunge forces Carpetright to scrap dividend

Carpetright, the floor coverings market leader, has ditched its final dividend and posted a sharp fall in full-year profits. The chief executive Darren Shapland also fired a warning shot across the bows of the property sector by stating that leases on 88 of its UK stores come up for renewal in the next five years, giving it the opportunity to slash its rents or hand the keys back to landlords.

Carpetright, which has 490 stores in the UK and 142 on the Continent, saw its profit plummet 76 per cent to just £4m for the year to 28 April.

This followed a sharp fall in margins, as the company invested more heavily in price promotions to convince consumers to part with their cash.

Debt fell £46.6m to £19.1m.