// Sosandar quarterly revenue shoots up by 219%
// Ahead of expectations but ongoing investment means annual net loss expected
// Gross margin increases to 53.3% thanks to holding full price during Black Friday
Sosandar has beaten expectations as a surge in repeat orders and new customers allowed it to record first quarter revenue that was higher than the entire prior financial year.
For the three-month period ending December 31, revenue came in at £1.6 million – a whopping 219 per cent year-on-year increase and slightly ahead of expectations.
Gross margin for the quarter, which includes the peak Christmas period, increased 500 basis points year-on-year to 53.3 per cent – which was assisted by holding full price during the Black Friday period.
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Meanwhile, the online fashion retailer ended the year with net cash of £4.6 million.
Sosandar said it would continue to invest further into brand marketing, and combined with the strong results so far, this meant revenue for the full year would be slightly ahead of market expectations with the net loss in line.
It attributed its quarterly performance to growth in repeat orders and continued new customer acquisition.
The customer database increased 209 per cent to nearly 100,000, the conversion rate increased 129 basis points to 3.47 per cent, while the average audience value increased 10 per cent to £105.58.
Sosandar said repeat orders increased a whopping 527 per cent to over 20,000, and the number of orders shot up by 221 per cent increase to 35,183.
The retailer added that the growing customer base and economies of scale in the business means its operating loss is down on prior year.
“We are pleased to be reporting another period of substantial growth over the key trading months to 31 December driven by strong full price sales and high sell through rates, combined with a successful seasonal sale at the end of period,” Sosandar join chief executives Ali Hall and Julie Lavington said.
“We are delighted by the engagement we are building with our customers, evidenced by the increase in visits, orders and especially conversion and margins which are already comparing favourably with established businesses.”
They added: “Combined with a substantial increase in repeat orders and a significant uplift in conversion rates to 3.47 per cent, this highlights the underlying quality of our products and the sizeable growth opportunities we have with the Sosandar brand.”
Sosandar was launched in 2016 by Hall, a former Look magazine editor, and Lavington, a former publishing director.
Celebrities that have been seen wearing their clothes include Zoe Ball, Susanna Reid, Melanie Sykes and Una Healy.
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