Trading Update

RNS Number : 2737P

Toople PLC

16 November 2016

 

16 November 2016

Toople Plc

("Toople" or the "Company" or the "Group")

Trading Update

Toople Plc (LSE: TOOP), a provider of bespoke telecom services to UK SMEs, is pleased to provide the following update on the Company's progress since its IPO.

The Company launched Toople.com in May this year, offering broadband, VoIP and landline services and mobile phone packages to small businesses. Since launch, the Company has been steadily increasing the number of customers it attracts to its platform, and is now provisioning over 200 new orders on average per month. The Directors are targeting a significantly increased average monthly order rate during 2017.

In addition to its SME customer base, the Group also provides telecoms services (minutes, lines, broadband, cloud PBX) and billing functionality, through the Company's bespoke telecoms platform, Merlin, to a number of wholesale customers. These services are provided on a licence fee and provision agreement and Toople also makes gross margin ongoing in addition to the monthly licence fee revenue. While the wholesale offering is not deemed to be a core part of the business, there has been a notable increase in the number of orders for these services, and the Company continues to monitor and review the potential opportunities going forward.

Further to this, Toople is pleased to announce that it has recently been accredited by over 30 of the UKs biggest business to business cashback and comparison sites, with the most notable listings on; uSwitch, Quidco, Topcashback, and Broadband Genie. Orders on line and over the phone have already started to be received through these website. This further supports the expansion of the Toople.com brand in the B2B segment.

The management team continues to use its telecoms experience to identify marketing opportunities that management considers to offer the best return on investment. The current cost of customer acquisition ranges between £40 and £91 per customer, and the Company expects to achieve a 30% margin over the contract life of the customer. The Company also expects to reduce this average customer acquisition cost as it attracts more customers to its platform. In what is a dynamic market, the Group is also exploring additional and other, cost effective routes to market.

Customer service is central to its strategy. Toople.com aims to attract and retain its customers by delivering "right first time" UK based customer service. It is therefore pleased to have achieved an average customer satisfaction score of 8.8 out of 10 via Trustpilot, which is significantly higher than the average scores achieved by the leading companies operating in the sector.

Andy Hollingworth, CEO, Toople Plc, said, "Toople Plc aims to attract customers to its web site via cost effective digital marketing. It allows those customers to select the right telecom products for their businesses using its proprietary Merlin software which can provide an instant quote based on the best network available from TalkTalk Business, BT Openreach, BT Wholesale and Vodafone. This software means Toople.com is highly scalable. This scalability, combined with the orders we have received to date and our tight cost control, means I am comfortable that the Company has sufficient cash resources to pursue its current strategy. We believe that our customer activity and the feedback we have received to date demonstrates that Toople.com definitely has a market opportunity in the small business segment."

A date for the announcement of Full Year results will be communicated to the market in due course.

- ENDS -

For further information:

Toople PLC                                                                                        0800 0499 499

Andy Hollingworth, Chief Executive Officer

Cairn Financial Advisers LLP                                                        020 7 213 0880

Emma Earl / Rebecca Anderson, Financial Adviser

Vicarage Capital                                                                               020 3651 2911

Broker

Rupert Williams / Jeremy Woodgate

Redleaf Communications                                                            020 7382 4730

Rebecca Sanders-Hewett                                                            [e-mail]

Sarah Fabietti-Dallison

Sam Modlin

 

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