Trading Update

RNS Number : 0827H

boohoo.com plc

11 March 2015

 



For immediate release

11 March 2015

boohoo.com plc - trading update for the two months and highlights for the year to 28^th February 2015

"The Global Fashion Leader for a Social Generation"

£'000	Two months to 28th February 2015				Year to 28th February 2015
	FY15	FY14	Increase	CER	FY15	FY14	Increase	CER
Sales	21,861	17,870	22%	24%	139,851	109,791	27%	31%
UK	14,558	12,845	13%	13%	94,342	70,992	33%	33%
ROE	2,903	2,202	32%	46%	18,086	13,058	39%	47%
ROW	4,400	2,823	56%	59%	27,423	25,741	7%	16%

Highlights for the two months to 28^th February 2015

·     Revenue up 22% (24% CER)

·     Strong performance in the Rest of the World

·     Gross margin approximately 58%, reflecting the January sale

·     3m active customers, up 29% on prior year

·     Focus on conversion and profit margin during the period ahead of accelerating marketing spend into the Spring Summer 2015 season

Highlights for the year to 28^th February 2015

·     Revenue up 27% (31% CER)

·     Gross margin approximately 61%

·     EBITDA margin for the year expected to be approximately 10%

·     Continued investment in warehouse infrastructure with the WMS successfully implemented and construction of the warehouse extension scheduled for completion in April

·     New fully responsive website delivering improved mobile experience with handheld now accounting for almost 50% of visits

·     Product range continues to be extended with the successful launch of boohoo Petite and boohoo FIT during the period

·     £54m cash on balance sheet at year end

Commentary

Following a challenging third quarter to our financial year in the UK, we have focussed on driving customer conversion and margin during the two months to February 2015.  January is a promotional month and February a transitional month into the Spring season so we have held marketing spend at c.10% of sales ahead of increasing that towards levels seen in the first quarter last year.  Early indications suggest our Spring #WeAreUs campaign is being positively received and was trending at the number one position on Twitter on launch day.

We have continued to gain market share in the UK, achieving a 2.17% share of traffic in February 2015 according to Hitwise, a 12% improvement on the prior year.

The Rest of Europe continued to perform strongly for boohoo.com during the period, with 46% constant currency growth, a reflection of our focus on fewer key markets.  In the Rest of World, investment in our proposition continued to produce encouraging results with continued acceleration of growth in the last two months of the year.

Group EBITDA margins are expected to be in line with previous guidance of approximately 10% for the year.

Our investment in infrastructure and IT continues and we expect the construction of the extension to the warehouse to be completed during April which will provide significant capacity for future growth.

Mobile now represents almost half of all sessions and daily unique visitors. The new responsive website launched in September has seen mobile conversion improve by over 40% in the last quarter.

The Board has considered the levels of cash in the business and will be seeking authorisation to buy back up to 10% of issued share capital to be approved at the next AGM. Any share buy back would also be conditional on independent shareholders approving a whitewash resolution pursuant to Rule 9 of the City Code on Takeovers and Mergers.

Joint Chief Executives Mahmud Kamani and Carol Kane commented:

"We continue to build our business for the long term, as we stated at our IPO last year, and our clear objective is to deliver sustainable growth.  We remain absolutely focussed on execution and are increasing our marketing spend in FY16 to drive momentum in the business."

Analyst/Investor conference call:

boohoo.com will host a conference call for analysts and investors at 9.30am (UK time) today.  Please call/email Buchanan for dial-in details.  The results for the full year are expected to be announced on 6^th May 2015.

Enquiries

boohoo.com plc Mahmud Kamani, Joint Chief Executive Carol Kane, Joint Chief Executive Neil Catto, Chief Financial Officer Benjamin Robertson, Investor Relations	c/o Buchanan Tel: [phone] [e-mail] Tel: [phone]
Buchanan - Financial PR adviser Richard Oldworth Helen Chan Gabriella Clinkard	Tel: [phone] [e-mail]
Zeus Capital - Nominated adviser and joint broker Nick Cowles Andrew Jones John Goold	Tel: [phone] Tel: [phone]
Jefferies Hoare Govett - joint broker Nick Adams Max Jones Ben Bailey	Tel: [phone]

About boohoo.com

"24/7 Global Fashion"

Keeping one step ahead of the trends or making a subtle style change is easy with boohoo.com and with up to 100 pieces hitting the site every day and a new collection each week, boohoo.com never stops - it's 24/7 fashion at its best.

From the UK's best kept fashion secret to one of the fastest growing own brand, international e-tailers, boohoo.com has quickly evolved into a global fashion leader of its generation.  Combining cutting-edge, aspirational design with an affordable price tag, boohoo.com has been pushing boundaries since 2006 to bring its customers all the latest looks for less.

www.boohoo.com	www.boohoo.com/newz	fr.boohoo.com
www.boohoo.com/europe	www.boohoo.com/sweden	de.boohoo.com
www.boohoo.com/usa	www.boohoo.com/denmark	it.boohoo.com
www.boohoo.com/canada	www.boohoo.com/norway	nl.boohoo.com
www.boohoo.com/aus		es.boohoo.com

Appendix - prior period revenues

Revenue by period for the year ending 28^th February 2015

£'000s	Q1	yoy %	yoy % CER	Q2	yoy %	yoy % CER
Sales	30,659	24%	30%	36,538	37%	41%
UK	20,686	44%	44%	24,919	50%	50%
ROE	3,891	36%	40%	4,828	50%	61%
ROW	6,082	(20)%	(6)%	6,791	0%	8%

£'000s	4m to Dec	yoy %	yoy % CER	2m to Feb	yoy %	yoy % CER	FY15	yoy %	yoy % CER
Sales	50,793	25%	27%	21,860	22%	24%	139,851	27%	31%
UK	34,179	26%	26%	14,558	13%	13%	94,342	33%	33%
ROE	6,464	35%	41%	2,903	32%	46%	18,086	39%	47%
ROW	10,150	19%	24%	4,399	56%	59%	27,423	7%	16%

Revenue by period for the year ending 28^th February 2014

£'000s	Q1	yoy %	yoy % CER	Q2	yoy %	yoy % CER
Sales	24,825	127%	118%	26,607	78%	80%
UK	14,354	68%	68%	16,577	80%	80%
ROE	2,862	112%	104%	3,219	107%	93%
ROW	7,609	626%	597%	6,811	63%	76%

£'000s	4m to Dec	yoy %	yoy % CER	2m to Feb	yoy %	yoy % CER	FY14	yoy %	yoy % CER
Sales	40,488	44%	45%	17,870	35%	38%	109,791	63%	63%
UK	27,216	50%	50%	12,845	54%	54%	70,992	60%	60%
ROE	4,774	63%	52%	2,203	45%	33%	13,058	78%	66%
ROW	8,498	21%	28%	2,823	(16)%	(5)%	25,741	65%	72%

 

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