Listen to the audio version of the article
Gross sales at 855.8 million euros, with a decisive push from the American market which recorded an increase of 40.8% compared to 2022. And with a very strong drive from the so-called VIP customers who during the 2023 fiscal year impacted gross sales with +30.1 percent. Mytheresa, an e-tailer founded in 2006 on the foundations of the boutique of the same name in Munich, closes a fiscal year full of economic unknowns with rising sales but declining profitability indices. And it is betting on the next one, despite the uncertainties still present, with two large investments: «A new logistics center at Leipzig airport, in which a total of 40 million euros have been invested and from which the first order has already been shipped, and an upgrade – which took years – of our technology which, thanks to the migration to a new platform, will make both the purchasing experience and management more efficient”, said Michael Kliger, CEO of Mytheresa, to Il Sole 24 Ore.
The 2023 numbers and 2024 forecasts
The German company – listed on the NYSE – today published the results for the fourth quarter of 2023 and the entire fiscal year: the gross merchandising value (the gross value of sales, including shipping) rose by 14.5% to 855.8 million euros (with a fourth quarter up by 13% on the same period of the previous year), while net sales recorded +11.4% reaching 768.6 million euros.
If sales are running, there is a slowdown in the profitability indices: the gross operating margin at 49.8% is down compared to the 51.5% of the full year 2022 and the adjusted Ebitda at 41.1 million euros that’s down 40% from 68.7 million the previous year. Finally, the operating result was negative for 6.1 million (in 2022 it was +4.8 million euros). «We now look to 2024, and in particular to the second half of the year, when the two investments made in logistics and technology will be fully operational» continues Kliger. Mytheresa estimates for 2024 an increase in GMV and net sales of between 8 and 13 percent and an increase in gross profit between 8 and 13 percent.
The USA conquered by events and pop ups
The United States in particular shone, a market in which Mytheresa has invested heavily. However, Asia recorded a “double-digit increase in sales, with good growth also in the fourth quarter”, explains the CEO. What made the difference were the purchases of top clients who the platform pampered with unique products and experiences, from the collaboration with Valentino to the event with Dolce&Gabbana in Portofino which brought a hyper-selected number of guests three days in Liguria to celebrate the launch of an 84-piece capsule collection, complete with cocktails in the residence of Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana. Without forgetting the pop up store in the Hamptons which attracted 3,200 customers in just five weeks. «Focusing on this type of customer means knowing how to always be there for them – continues Kliger -. This strategy is bearing fruit: two years ago the share of purchases made by top clients was equal to 32.6% of the total value, today it is 38.5 percent”.
Focus on know-how
Among the product categories that are performing best, the CEO of Mytheresa cites “women’s clothing” and among the most requested brands are those of many Italian fashion houses, united by the excellence of the product: “Brunello Cucinelli, Loro Piana and Zegna are going very fast – he says -. In this historical moment, customers do not favor brands that are too fashionable but rather those that are the expression of a unique and superior quality savoir faire.”