On Thursday, e-commerce company THG and high street giants John Lewis and DFS Furniture all issued profit warnings, adding to the already dire outlook for the UK retail industry.

Following an operating loss of more than 89 million pounds in the first half of the year as a result of the company’s emphasis on maintaining low prices in order to optimize market share growth, THG shares dropped 18 per cent to a new record low. The expensive entry into new Asian markets and significant investment in new fulfilment centres made the performance worse.

The company revised its estimates for the entire year, now projecting revenue growth of 10 per cent to 15 per cent and adjusted profitability in the neighbourhood of 115 million pounds. Sales have previously increased by up to 25 per cent.

In the first half of the year, underlying earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization decreased by more than 60 per cent to 38.2 million pounds ($43.9 million). Due to difficult year-ago comparables, revenue growth slowed to 12 per cent, although it was still up 64 per cent from two years ago.

Following the furniture retailer’s announcement that business “softened substantially” in the first three months of its fiscal year ending June 2023, shares of DFS also plunged 13 per cent to test their pandemic-era lows. Pretax, along with orders, might decrease by up to two-thirds in the upcoming year, according to the warning.

Despite its stores in the UK being fully reopened, pretax profit for the most recent fiscal year had already decreased by 45 per cent to 60.3 million pounds. Costs associated with the shutdown of its businesses in Spain and the Netherlands, which fell victim to Covid-19 lockdowns, impacted performance.