Discount retailer Matalan has shown there is still good money to be made from cheap threads, as improved margins helped increase its profits by 72 per cent in the past six months, writes David Duffy.

Matalan, which has a store at the John Allen Centre in Cowley, Oxford, said pre-tax profits had risen to 35m in the 26 weeks to August 26, compared with 20.4m last year.

Turnover rose to 256.3m, against 162m. The group added its margins had risen by 0.4 per cent. The firm said sales from new, extended and re-sited stores had boosted sales.