Sosandar losses shrink, casual is key but customers still want glamour

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
Dec 1, 2020

Sosandar has narrowed its losses in the latest six months with the company’s sales having surged both during and after the spring lockdown.

On Tuesday, it announced its figures for the half-year to the end of September, as well as a trading update into November, and the news looked good. The firm has benefited from selling more casual looks but said it’s customer still has a taste for glamour.

The company hailed its "strong revenue growth, substantial improvement in EBITDA losses and acceleration of sales into the autumn”.

Looking at the start of the second half, the womenswear brand said its “reintroduction of carefully controlled customer acquisition from September to November delivered strong results, with a record month of revenue in October”.

Monthly sales for September to November increased by 115% compared to the average for the prior five months and a new daily record for revenue was achieved in November.

The period also saw 17% growth in revenue vs the same three-month period last year, but with a 49% reduction in marketing spend and a reduction in cost of acquisition of 52%. And there was a 28% increase in new email sign-ups in just three months, which has strengthened its database and should “underpin sales for future months”.

As for the first half, the period that covered both the spring lockdown and the easing of restrictions, the firm’s revenue rose 52% to £4.28 million with gross profit up 48% to £2.24 million. Its EBITDA loss shrank to £1.02 million from £2.71 million as it maintained a strong gross margin of 52.3%, down from 53.6% due to actions taken during the initial lockdown.

The company was understandably upbeat at the continual progress it has made and also said it saw high levels of customer engagement with repeat orders during the period rising 88%.

This was helped by the rapid expansion of its product range into the more casual styles that have proved popular this year, with “great successes seen in denim, loungewear and knitwear”.

Further expansion was seen as it launched on the John Lewis and Next websites “with good sales across all product categories”.

It also enjoyed a lower returns rate, down to 42% from 49%.

Co-CEOs and founders Ali Hall and Julie Lavington said that its trading has “quickly gained momentum” and while it’s selling much more casualwear, “the Sosandar customer has also not lost a taste for glamour, with sales of sequins, leather, fur coats and knee boots remaining strong”.

They also admitted that there are “short term uncertainties due to Covid-19” but added that the “scale of our opportunity is substantial and we are well placed to deliver on our ambition for Sosandar to be a long-term, sustainable success”.