Zalando raked in £704 million thanks to a 25 per cent jump in sales according to its half-yearly report, which was published today.
In addition, the online retailer increased its full-year profit guidance from four to 5.5 per cent and its adjusted group EBITDA came in at £62 million – a 167 per cent increase year-on-year.
Investments in the company‘s customer experience, as well as the continuing rollout of its multi-year platform strategy – both of which were compensated by strong operating leverage of the business – were the key drivers behind the company‘s profitability in the first half of 2016.
“Over the last few years we have been improving the quality of our service to our customers in the UK,” Zalanda markets vice president Delphine Mousseau said.
“Besides reducing our delivery times and broadening the assortment, Zalando was among the first fashion retailers to offer Apple Pay in the UK.
“For Autumn, we have planned collaborations with international fashion brands to inspire and convince an even larger group of trend-affine UK customers to try the fashion experience of Zalando.”
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Part of the company‘s customer experience investment is the expansion of its fulfilment capabilities, including a new logistics hub in Lahr, Germany, and an international satellite warehouse in Stradella, Italy, which started operations earlier this year and already accounts for 60 per cent of Italian orders.
Zalando also signed on popular brands to be sold on its website – such as Fenty by Rihanna, Club Monaco, Ivyrevel, and Kate Spade – as well as a successful joint campaign with Beyonce‘s Ivy Park in the second quarter.
The number of people who have downloaded the Zalando mobile app has doubled in the past 12 months, while the number of active customers grew to a record 18.8 million, with a record average order of 3.3 per annum.
Zalando employee numbers also increased from 9079 to 10639 since June 30, 2015.
“We are very proud of our first half results. They reflect strong customer momentum with strong growth at scale,” Zalando management board member Rubin Ritter said.
“Despite ongoing investments into our long-term growth strategy, our business showed increased strength and profitability.”
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