Character says it feels “confident of the prospects for the autumn/winter trading period”.

The update reads as follows –

“The Board of Character is pleased to provide an update on trading activities ahead of the Company’s results for the year ended 31 August 2018.

Character has delivered a very solid performance and continues to make good progress in meeting the demands of our customers and the consumer.

As anticipated at the time of our interim results in April 2018, the Group has witnessed a return to its previous growth pattern during the second half. With Character’s UK domestic business delivering record sales, the trading results for the financial year ended 31 August 2018 will comfortably reach market expectations.

Character’s established leading brands, developed in-house (such as Peppa Pig , Stretch and Teletubbies) and exclusive, distributed lines (including Little Live Pets and Mashems ), together with new ranges (such as Pokémon,
Treasure X and Doorables Disney Collection ) have been selling extremely well. In addition, the growing trend of new craze lines – impulse purchase items at the right price point, such as Soft ’n Slo Squish i es , Cakepop Cuties and Cra.Z.Slimy – has added a new, successful supplement to the Group’s strong product portfolio .

We continue to witness positive listings and strong demand from our customers for our core ranges and new introductions. As a business, we feel confident of the prospects for the autumn/winter trading period, which includes the all-important Christmas season. This, we believe, will provide a solid foundation for the financial year ending 31st August 2019.

With the combination of our collaborative culture, both within the Group as well as in partnerships with our customers and suppliers, the agility of our business model in addressing changes and challenges within our market and the proven skills of our central management team, the Board remains confident in the Group’s ability to grow the business profitably and expand its presence both domestically and internationally in the years to come.

The Group expects to release its preliminary results for the year ended 31 August 2018 on 29 November 2018.”