Dunelm has said that despite a "softer market", sales at the homewares retailer jumped by four per cent to £1.7 billion during the 12 months ended 29 June.

In its preliminary FY24 results, the company reported pre-tax profits growth of six per cent to £205 million, up from around £192 million in 2023.

But the company warned of a "challenging consumer environment", with the timing of a sector recovery remaining uncertain.

Dunelm's strong results buck a current trend in the homewares market which has seen household names such as Carpetright and Wilko collapse after many years in business.

"In a period when consumers faced inflationary pressures and competing demands for their disposable income, we have continued to raise the bar on the relevance and value we offer at Dunelm," said Nick Wilkinson, chief executive, Dunelm. "The continued delivery of volume-driven sales growth and further share gains in this softer market underlines this, and the strength and resilience of our business model."

The chief executive warned that while there have been some improvements to economic indicators, the homewares sector is yet to see a "meaningful change".

Even against this backdrop, he said, the company has made a solid start to the 2025 financial year.

"Our plans give us a clear pathway to reaching our next milestone of 10 per cent market share in the medium term, and we remain very confident in our ability to deliver long-term sustainable growth as a result," continued Wilkinson.

The company said it expects sales growth for the coming year to be driven by volume and further market share gains.

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