Harvey Norman has suffered a 5.4 percent drop in sales in Australia for the first quarter of 2013, with global sales falling 10 percent.
The retailer today released its preliminary financial results for the three month period ended September 30 2012.
It reported unaudited sales of $1.3 billion, and a 20 percent fall in pre-tax profit to $50.1 million. It did not break down sales per region.
The retailer largely attributed the drop to cautious consumers holding off on technology and entertainment spending, along with continued price deflation.
The disappointing first quarter comes on the back of a bad fiscal year for Harvey Norman, weighed down by a 31 percent drop in net profit to $172.5 million.
Overall sales fell 9.6 percent to $1.4 billion. It blamed the liquidation of electronics chain WOW Sight and Sound, as well as the restructure of Dick Smith and closure of numerous Retravision stores, resulting in “record-low” prices at its competitors.
During the year, Harvey Norman revealed plans to purchase several Retravision stores, eliminating a sizable chunk of its competition.
The retailer will take over Retravision and Betta Electrical stores in Gunnedah, New South Wales, as well as another six unnamed locations, not even a year after reporting a $41.07 million loss from its purchase of Clive Peeters and Rick Hart.
The plan will see Harvey Norman introduce new retail categories including cookware and appliances.
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