About You posts marginal revenue growth, narrows outlook

The About You Group slightly increased revenue by 2.1 percent to 439.6 million euros in the second quarter.

The company said in a statement that based on more efficient cost structures in logistics and marketing, the group made progress towards breaking even at the level of adjusted EBITDA.

In view of the results achieved as well as the persistently challenging market environment, the company’s management board has narrowed its expectations for revenue growth in the current financial year. The board now expects group revenue growth in the lower half of the guidance range of 1 percent to 11 percent, while margin is expected to improve significantly and adjusted EBITDA to reach break even level.

"Our goal is and remains sustainable profitability. The improvement in our cost structures is both gratifying and necessary to reach break-even at the level of adjusted EBITDA in the current financial year," said Tarek Müller, co-founder and co-CEO of the About You Group.

About You reports slight increase in Q2 revenue

The company added that focus on profitability led to a significant improvement in margin and adjusted EBITDA of negative 12.9 million euros in the second quarter, compared to negative 42.8 million euros in the previous year. This corresponds to an adjusted EBITDA margin of negative 2.9 percent against negative 9.9 percent in the previous year).

The two reporting segments in the company’s commerce business slightly increased their revenue. The DACH segment grew profitably by 0.3 percent to 207.3 million euros, despite the dampened consumer sentiment in Germany. Growth in Austria and Switzerland offset the weaker performance in Germany. In the same period, adjusted EBITDA reached 3.9 million euros and the adjusted EBITDA margin increased to 1.9 percent.

Compared to the first quarter, the Rest of Europe (RoE) segment returned to its growth path and increased revenue by 1.3 percent to 212.1 million euros. Adjusted EBITDA showed an improvement to negative 22.4 million euros and the adjusted EBITDA margin was at negative 10.6 percent.

In the B2B business, About You's Tech, Media, and Enabling (TME) segment saw a revenue decline by 3 percent to 44.8 million euros. Adjusted EBITDA in the TME segment more than doubled to 10.5 million euros, with a significant increase in the adjusted EBITDA margin of 23.4 percent, partially fueled by the increasing share of high-margin software licence revenue.

"We have driven our revenue growth and seen increasing customer and order numbers, despite challenging consumer sentiment. Once the market recovers, we will consistently leverage the potential of our business model to further accelerate revenue growth and deliver sustained profitability," added Müller.