Britain's household goods and clothing retailers are bearing the brunt of a slowdown in consumer spending, while grocers are being helped by higher food prices, trading updates and a survey showed.
Fashion groups Laura Ashley and Alexon, tiling specialist Topps Tiles and the Co-Operative Group, which runs Britain's fifth-biggest supermarket chain, all agreed that trading was tough and likely to remain so.
But they are coping very differently.
The Co-Op posted a 36 percent rise in first-half operating profit helped by sales growth at its food business, while Laura Ashley's first-half underlying profit rose 13 percent, boosted by new store openings and steps to improve profitability.
Alexon, in contrast, warned annual profits would miss forecasts, while Topps Tiles said earnings would probably fall in its new fiscal year, which starts later this month.
A closely watched survey from the Confederation of British Industry confirmed the generally gloomy picture, as well as the differing fortunes within the industry.
It showed retail sales fell for a sixth straight month in September, with grocers faring best and household goods stores worst.
Store groups are struggling as indebted shoppers curb spending amid rising food, fuel and mortgage costs. The UK general retail index has slumped 34 percent this year, one of the worst performances on the London stock market.
"It looks like it could be the worst retail environment for at least 30 years and we see downside to all forecasts," Panmure analyst Philip Dorgan said in a research note.
Home-improvement groups have been particularly hard hit, due to a plunge in housing market transactions.
Topps Tiles, Britain's biggest tile and wood flooring specialist, said sales at stores open at least a year had dropped 13.1 percent in the past eight weeks.
While operating profit for the year ending September 27 would be within analysts' current range of forecasts, Chief Executive Matt Williams told Reuters that earnings would probably fall next year.
Topps Tiles also said, however, that it had renegotiated its bank agreements, easing fears that it might follow home furnishings peers such as Floors 2 Go and ScS Upholstery into administration, a form of creditor protection.
"Although trading remains difficult ... the new banking arrangements remove a very important straight-jacket," Kaupthing analysts said in a research note.
Topps Tiles shares jumped as much as 11 percent to 68.5 pence in early trade, though by 1050 GMT they had retreated to stand up 3.3 percent at 63.25 pence.
Fashion and homewares group Laura Ashley also reported tough trading in home-related products. Like-for-like sales in home accessories such as lighting and bed linen were down 13.3 percent in the 26 weeks to July 26, while furniture sales fell 13.2 percent on the same basis and decorating was down 8.3 percent.
But it was helped by a 6.7 percent rise in same-store sales at its fashion business, helped by strong demand for knitwear and dresses, and a 1 percentage point increase in gross margin, driven by better sourcing and fewer markdowns.
Laura Ashley shares leapt as much as 17 percent to 17 pence.
Clothing and footwear group Alexon, however, is coping less well, hit by a particularly weak performance at its Bay Trading stores aimed at girls and younger women.
It reported a 40 percent fall in first-half operating profit , and Finance Director Robin Piggott told Reuters that full-year profit could be about half what some analysts' have been expecting.
Alexon shares dropped 7 percent to 44.75 pence.
Meanwhile the Co-operative Group, Britain's biggest mutual retailer, said it was benefiting from savings generated from its founding merger in 2007, as well as higher food prices.
Like-for-like food sales were up 5 percent in the 28 weeks to July 26, which the group said outperformed market growth of 4.6 percent.
But Chief Executive Peter Marks told Reuters that growth was driven almost entirely by inflation, and there was very little volume growth in the grocery industry due to shoppers' constrained budgets.