Yoox Net-a-Porter group’s first set of full year results since the merger between luxury Italian e-commerce players Yoox and London-headquartered Net-a-Porter hailed net revenue of £4m. 7.1m orders were placed last year, up from 5.8m in 2014.
Billions have been wiped off the value of luxury stocks amidst a slowing demand for luxury goods, but YNAP have eluded the challenges other luxury goods makers have been facing, posting a 23% sales increase in the Asia-Pacific region: the company‘s fastest-growing.
“The Chinese market for luxury online is very different from offline,” said CEO Federico Marchetti. “It is a very young market and it is growing fast.”
It was a year of firsts for the group, which merged in February 2015. Net Set, the world’s first fully shoppable social network, was launched, as well as the first combined advertising campaign for Net-a-Porter and Mr Porter in time for Christmas. Net-a-Porter also introduced a feature that allows personalised product recommendations according to the customer’s geo-loction. New delivery options were introduced, including scheduled appointments, collection from a preferred pick-up point and the possibility of leaving an order with a neighbour. In May, Mr Porter also began offering German customers to the option to pay after delivery.
Both Yoox and Net-a-Porter were founded in 2000. It is understood that the merger between the two businesses was agreed secretly, behind the back of founder and former CEO Natalie Massenet who had managed to stave it from happening previously in 2013. Massenet stepped down as executive chairman of the baord in September 2015 but registered a new company called Imaginary Ventures Ltd on 14 October according to paperwork filed at Companies House.
She is currently subject to a 12-month non-compete agreement so won‘t be able to action any new plans until September 2016.
