Pacific Brands has returned to profit after seven years of restructuring, posting a $24.3 million half-year net profit.
The ABC and others report that this is an improvement on the $109 million on the half-year result last year. Sales were up 8.6 per cent to $423.3 million.
"It's a very clean and respectable result," Allan Gray, managing director at Simon Mawhinney, told Fairfax.
"It's quite a good turnaround story (but) it has been a tumultuous ride."
Pacific Brands has sold off or ended 300 product lines and cut around 2,000 jobs since 2009, controversially shifting its manufacturing base to Asia.
“…[W]e have been working on it for a long time and reshaping the portfolio to focus on the most attractive parts of our business and the brands we have, and I think the result in the first half is indicative of that and I hope and plan for it continue,” CEO David Bortolussi told The Australian.
Its shift in focus to retail has been positive, Fairfax reports, with Bonds and Sheridan stores increasing sales by 24 per cent and online and online sales up 35 per cent. Bortolussi believes retail and online sales could eventually make up half of sales.