Specialty grooming products retailer, Shaver Shop has warned investors of lower sales over the last six months.

Shaver Shop has forecast that sales for the six month to December 31 will be lower than previously anticipated and below its prospectus forecast.

The company – which made its debut on the Australian stock exchange on July 1 – blamed weaker-than-expected sales in recent weeks of key products, specifically in the hair styling category, and the closure of its Queensgate store in New Zealand following the recent earthquake.

Corporate store retail sales are expected to come in between $26.5 million and $28 million for December, down from its previous forecast of about $29.5 million.

In its statement to investors, the specialty retailer said it had seen strong sales growth in a range of key product categories including long term hair removal, female beauty and men’s electric shaver on the back of new product releases and category expansion initiatives, however this had not been sufficient to offset weakness in the hair styling category, which stronger in the prior corresponding period.

“Importantly, if the sales contribution from the Queensgate store and the hair styling category are removed from this year and pcp, like-for-like store sales have increased 4.5 per cent in December month to date,” the company said.

“As such, we believe that the softness in trading is isolated to a small number of issues. We remain confident that our organic growth, buyback and greenfield expansion strategies will lead to increased shareholder value over the medium to long term.”

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