Over the past financial year (ended March 31), the Lyon group recorded turnover of 684.9 million euros, compared to 724.1 million in 2020-2021, a decrease of 5.4% then that he was counting on a sales volume of 750 to 800 million euros.
“After a first half of growth, the group had to deal with a market context disturbed by the difficulties of supplying graphics cards during key periods (Black Friday and Christmas), combined with a return to a normal consumption situation. on BtoC activities”, explains the group in a press release. “BtoB” activities increased by 4.8%, however, underlines the company, “reflecting the strong dynamic of activity in the 1st half of the year”.
New shops, new warehouse in Isère
The gross margin is also down slightly, to 154.3 million euros, against 162.9 million, which “reflects the relative lower activity in the second half”. But the group is pleased to have “managed to maintain the gross margin rate at 22.5% stable compared” to the record of the previous year. The fruit, he assures, “of the structural actions carried out over the last two years (improvement of the conditions of purchase, integration of the back office)” and “always of a lesser use of promotional offers”. Gross operating surplus (EBITDA) also fell, to 58.4 million euros against 70 million, but, with an EBITDA margin of 8.5%, operating profitability remains “historically high”.
With the Covid-19 crisis, French people’s appetite for electronic products had exploded, which had boosted turnover by 46% in 2020-2021. For the managing director Olivier de la Clergerie, quoted in the press release, the company achieved “a good performance” over the past financial year, observing that the slightly downturn in results nevertheless marks “a very clear increase compared to to pre-crisis activity. And “in view of current trends, the group considers that it will return to a growth rate comparable to 2021 (…) at the end of September 2022”.
Growth should come in particular from the opening of “more than 20 new stores” by the end of the financial year, supplied by the new logistics warehouse in St-Quentin-Fallavier (Isère), while the company, created in 1997, has long marketed its products only online.