Misfiring Comet burns another £15m hole in owner's pocket

UK retailer's poor festive performance and mounting debt mean Kesa will have to pay up to £65m to offload it in two weeks' time

Comet owner Kesa Electricals will have to reach further into its pocket to offload the troubled UK retailer as its net debt levels continue to spiral after a disappointing post-Christmas sales period.

The Anglo-French electronics giant has already accepted a £50m write-off to ensure that Comet can trade for the foreseeable future under the guidance of new owner OpCapita.

But an interim management statement issued today by Kesa reveals that Comet's net debt upon disposal, which is set for 3 February, is projected to exceed the agreed level by £10m to £15m.

This means getting shot of Comet, which was bought by OpCapita for the nominal price of £2, will have left Kesa up to £65m out of pocket.

For the period from the start of November to 8 January, Comet's gross margin improved and sales performance also ameliorated in the run-up to Christmas, says today's statement. But the Christmas to new year period was "poor", and total sales for the period were down 15 per cent year on year in sterling.

Growth across all Kesa's other operations stood at a modest 0.3 per cent, as measured in euros. Its flagship Darty France operation endured a revenue drop of 2.2 per cent, while its brands in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Belgium and the Netherlands posted a 10.1 per cent top-line increase. Its less mature businesses, in Italy, Turkey and Spain, saw turnover decrease 1.7 per cent annually.