Boux Avenue sees sales growth, but loss widens on investment

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Jan 9, 2018

Boux Avenue chairman Theo Paphitis said he was “pleased” with Boux Avenue’s FY2016/17 performance, as he reported growth across all channels on Monday.

The lingerie brand increased its sales by £5 million to £49.4 million in the year to 1 April, with like-for-like sales up 7% on the prior period and the online business growing by more than 30%.

The sales increase was supported by a strong focus on improving the like-for-like performance and driving sales online. During the period, Boux Avenue invested in a new website to facilitate continued growth in the UK and abroad, and spent over £3 million in creating a new warehouse and fulfilment facility in Crewe.

Additionally, it developed new sales channels by partnering up with online retailers such as Next, Asos and Very.co.uk, both in the UK and internationally, which will help the brand reach new customers and support its plans.

The company currently trades from 29 stores in the UK, including a recently opened location at the Westgate Centre in Oxford. A further store is expected to open at Nottingham’s Victoria Centre this year, taking the brand to its target of having 30 stores in key shopping centres in the UK.

The series of investments in the brand and its operations lead to the company widening its EBITDA loss by £0.5 million to £2.2 million, compared to a loss of £1.7 million a year earlier. But Paphitis said: “With continued growth, we expect our investment in developing the Boux Avenue brand to generate returns in the near future. We do, however, expect retailing in the UK to remain challenging, not helped by the political and economic uncertainty we face.”

According to reports, FY2017/18 has not been easy for the British lingerie company, with like-for-like festive sales declining 2.8% during the six weeks to 24 December.