Despite difficult market conditions, the owner of the Athlete’s Foot and Shoe Superstore has reported a 30 per cent lift in its net profit after tax (NPAT) for the year ended 26 June 2011.

RCG saw consolidated NPAT increase from $6.9 million to $8.9 million for the 2011 financial year.

This was thanks to the incredible sales growth in Shoe Superstore of 58 per cent from the prior financial year to $5.8 million, while a like-for-like sales increased by 15.9 per cent.

RCG chairman Ivan Hammerschlag said the company is pleased with the execution of the Shoe Superstore business plan, particularly since it began operating an online store when RCG required it for which saw a 40 per cent growth during the 2011 financial year.

“We are particularly pleased with the new store rollout schedule and the results being obtained from the online store. We believe that the new site and product range combined with the extension of the physical store network will drive the growth momentum even further and we are expecting growth in the Shoe superstore online channel to accelerate as a result,” he said.

Meanwhile, profits also grew for The Athlete's Foot where the chain recorded total sales growth of 7.3 per cent from $186.1 million to $199.4 million for the year, with 4.3 per cent like‐for‐like sales growth.

Whilst July like‐for‐like sales were 1.8 per cent down on the previous year, this was on the back of 10 per cent like-for‐likes in July 2010. For the first four trading weeks in August, like‐for‐like sales are 1 per cent up on the previous financial year.