World Cup scores for Dixons Carphone

“In the UK and Ireland our electricals business has had a strong start with good growth for a second year helped by the World Cup, some consumer recovery and a number of initiatives including free warranties on a wide range of products,” Mr James said.

The Carphone Warehouse side of the business fared less well with life-for-like sales down 6pc, but the company said this was expected because of a strong performance the previous year.

Mr James added that the integration was “going well” with seven departments serving both parts of the business.

The merger created a business with about 1,200 outlets, more than 40,000 staff and annual revenues of about £11bn. The Dixons side of its portfolio also includes the Currys and PC World brands.

News of a merger first emerged in February, with Carphone Warehouse founder Sir Charles Dunstone – now chairman of Dixons Carphone – in talks about joining the business he created with Dixons.

The intention behind the tie-up was to create a business ready for the “internet of things”, selling interconnected products such as fridges that tell consumers when the food in them is going off or running out and needs to be replaced.

The deal also gave scope for the two companies to consolidate their estates, with Dixons getting its products into Carphone Warehouse’s small high street stores and a similar arrangement with Dixon’s larger outlets in retail parks outside of town centres. This also gives the scale of close stores.

By combining, the two companies are also better able to take on competitors such as Amazon, with their combined size meaning they can negotiate better prices from suppliers and offer a wider range of products.

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