Multi brand online retailer Shop Direct has posted an impressive 512% increase in pre-tax profits to £40.4m in its year to June 30.
The e-tailer said earnings were primarily boosted by its Very.co.uk brand and mobile growth across the group, which also owns Littlewoods.
Group sales were up 3% to £1.74bn, while turnover at Very was up 23.1% and is now the group‘s largest brand, delivering more than £700m revenue.
The online side of the business accounted for 84% of total sales, increasing to 86% in the first quarter of the new financial year.
Mobile made up for 44% of online sales, rising to 52% for the first quarter.
Shop Direct said 54% of its customers browse, and shop, across more than one device, with a fifth using three: desktops, tablets and mobiles.
Speaking of the results, Alex Baldock, Chief Executive of Shop Direct said:
“These are strong, driven by the outstanding growth of Very.co.uk and the unrelenting boom in m-commerce. Mobile continues to be a game changer for us, with more than half of our online sales now from smartphones and tablets.
It‘s clear that our strategy is working and we‘ve made some big strides toward building a world-class digital retailer. But we‘re nowhere near the full potential of this business, there‘s a ton more to do, and we‘ll continue to invest heavily to get it done.
Looking ahead, we‘re excited to have announced the launch of our new luxury e-tail brand, Very Exclusive, which will take place during London Fashion Week in February 2015. In the meantime, our focus is on delivering another great Christmas for our millions of customers against what remains a tough economic backdrop.”
Shop Direct said its first Black Friday promotion last year generated the highest value of daily orders ever for Very.co.uk, with 10,000 orders placed during the busiest hour.
Electricals and seasonal were the strongest of growth categories for Shop Direct driven by TVs, white goods and gaming consoles alongside the development of its beauty offering.
