FRENCH Connection slid to a loss last year as the gloom on UK high streets took its toll.
The fashion retailer, which operates from Frasers in Victoria Square, missed its guidance for the year after trading in the second half was "considerably worse than expected" following a poor festive period.
It said revenue fell 11.4 per cent to £119.9m for the 12 months to January 31 as it was weighed down by store closures and "the difficult retail trading environment".
Chairman and chief executive Stephen Marks said the company's performance "has not been as anticipated" and the business has not been assisted by "potential uncertainty due to the Covid-19 coronavirus".
French Connection slipped to an underlying loss of £2.9m during the year, from an £800,000 profit in the previous year.
It said like-for-like sales continued to decline in the UK and Europe, falling 2.5 per cent over the period.
The company said it has also been hit by its closure programme, which saw 11 high street stores, three outlets and four concessions shut their doors.
It also took a £500,000 hit from the closure of its joint venture in Hong Kong and China.
