Results for the year ended March reflect a 6.4% increase in turnover to R8.6-billion, after a particularly tough second half of the year in which consumer spending dipped.
Gross margins were down 0.2% mainly because Christmas trading was under pressure and at the low end of management expectations.
Full-year profit dropped 6.3% and headline earnings a share dropped to 521.4c, down 6.8% from 559.5c the previous year.
Foschini CEO Doug Murray said the group's customers, who are mainly in the middle-income market, were hard hit by job losses.
Defaults by customers grew marginally, in the wake of an increasing number having to resort to debt counsellors for relief. Net bad debts as percentage of the debtors book increased to 9.9%.
Turnover growth during the year under review was up 7.9% in the first half, but, with deteriorating consumer spending up 5% in the second half, yielded 6.4% growth for the year.
Clothing sales rose 8.3%, home-ware and furniture increased 15.7% and cosmetics grew by 12.8%. Cellphone sales improved in the second half but sales were down 7.2%. Jewellery edged lower 1.2%.
The sports division, trading as Totalsports, Sportscene and DueSouth, grew turnover 15.4%.
The Foschini division, comprising Foschini, Donna-Claire, Fashionexpress and Luella, had a mixed year with better growth in the first half. Turnover for the year was up 6.5%. Menswear division Markham grew turnover by 4.9%.
During the year, the group opened 100 stores and closed 12, representing an 8.1% increase in trading area compared with the previous year.
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