Sales boom for Zalando and Co .: delivery services cream off in the corona crisis

The pandemic is causing a number of companies severe losses in sales. But the closure of restaurants and shops also brings new winners: delivery service companies such as Hellofresh and Zalando gain millions of new customers within a few weeks.

The need to stay at home during the Corona crisis has given many delivery services a huge increase in sales. The big winners include Europe's largest online fashion retailer Zalando and the cooking box supplier Hellofresh.

Hellofresh's sales more than doubled to around 972 million euros in the second quarter, as the Berlin-based company announced. There have been a high number of recurring orders and an order volume "that was greater than ever before," said company boss Dominik Richter. Therefore, the forecast could be raised again.

CFO Christian Gärtner justified this with the promising start into the third quarter and the renewed intensification of the corona crisis in some markets. One trader spoke of a positive surprise. The Hellofresh share climbed more than seven percent at the start of trading. Closed restaurants, curfews and a lot of people who work from home on a regular basis play into the hands of the supplier of cooking boxes that come straight to your home with recipes and measured ingredients.

Hellofresh displaces US market leader

According to Richter, many customers now not only eat their dinner, but also their lunch at home. This trend is likely to continue. The fact that many customers did not travel in the summer also had a positive effect in the second quarter.

In order to cope with growth, Hellofresh opens new production facilities in Great Britain and the USA. The company has been active in Denmark since June and now in 14 countries. In the second quarter, the number of customers rose from 2.4 to almost 4.2 million. Around two million from the United States. The former market leader there, Blue Apron, seems to be suffering from this: Compared to the previous year, the US group even lost customers.

The adjusted operating result (Ebitda) of Hellofresh increased to a previously unprecedented 153.6 million euros, also due to lower marketing costs. For the full year, currency-adjusted sales are expected to increase by 75 to 95 (previously 55 to 70) percent and the operating profit (AEbitda) margin between nine and eleven percent instead of between eight and ten percent.

Zalando doubles profit in the second quarter

The closed restaurants and curfews also doubled sales for the food supplier Delivery Hero in the second quarter. The DAX candidate expects sales between 2.6 and 2.8 billion euros this year. Analysts already had values ​​around 2.7 billion euros on the slip, Delivery Hero itself has so far promised 2.4 to 2.6 billion.

Zalando also won millions of customers in the Corona crisis. At the end of June, the number was a fifth higher than last year at more than 34 million, said the Berlin-based company. In the first six months, sales increased at a similar rate to 3.56 billion euros, and in the second quarter the increase was even 27 percent. The adjusted operating result rose slightly to 113.3 million euros.

The company only raised its forecast for the full year in mid-July. It is now expecting sales growth of 15 to 20 percent instead of 10 to 20 percent and an operating profit (EBIT) of between 250 and 300 million euros instead of 100 to 200 million euros for 2020.