CDON Group Q1 net sales climb 10%

25 Apr '14

2 min read

CDON Group AB announces interim report for 1 January – 31 March 2014. First Quarter Net sales were up 10%, amounting to SEK 1,133.2 million. Previous year sales totalled SEK 1,032.4 million excluding divested operations and SEK 1,051.1 million including divested operations. Gross margin of 14.9% compared with 14.1% previous year, excluding divested operations.

Operating profit amounted to SEK 0.1 million. Previous year operating profit was SEK -4.2 million excluding divested operations and SEK -7.8 million including divested operations. Net income totalled SEK -4.2 (-17.3) million. Basic earnings per share of SEK -0.04 (-0.21) and Cash flow from operations improved by SEK 159.4 million and amounted to SEK -167.7 (-327.1) million

CEO statement

Paul Fischbein, President and CEO, commented: “CDON Group has seen a promising start to 2014; we are delivering a growth of 10 percent, a positive operating profit in this seasonally weak first quarter and an improvement in cash flow of almost SEK 159 million year-on-year. Sports & Health continues to display a high growth rate at 30 percent, as well as stable margins. Home & Garden enjoyed strong sales during the quarter, with an increase of 26 percent.

The transformation of CDON.com into a leading online department store is continuing. Sales volumes for CDON.com Marketplace displayed good growth in the first quarter, and CDON.com’s operating profit, which is included in the Entertainment segment, was slightly above break-even.

Within Nelly.com, the previous quarter’s launch in France was followed up by launches in Belgium and Poland (after the end of the interim reporting period). NLYman.com, an online boutique devoted exclusively to the fashion-conscious man, was also launched.

After the first quarter we disclosed a pilot test of an in-house payment solution for two of the Group’s Swedish sites. Testing will start in the coming months. We see the pilot test as an important step to further improve the shopping experience while CDON Group can a take a greater responsibility for the value chain.

All in all, CDON Group is in a good position to be able to gradually increase investments in 2014 to fuel growth, mainly within the Fashion and Sports & Health segments.”

CDON Group AB

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