The Aditya Birla group firm achieved its ‘highest quarterly revenues’ in Q2 of FY ’23, the company said in its earnings statement. The consolidated EBITDA for the quarter increased to Rs. 418 crore owing to strong performance across its various business segments.
“Robust Like-to-Like and consistent e-commerce performance have been key drivers of growth in the quarter. The period also saw an increase in marketing investments post a hiatus of more than 2 years since Covid, as the company reinvigorated its focus towards brand building and strengthening consumer connect,” it said.
In July-September quarter, ABFRL pursued an ‘aggressive network expansion’ across brands by adding 21 stores under the Pantaloons format and 85 stores for its branded business.
ABFRL’s revenue from Madura Fashion & Lifestyle segment was up by 45.51 percent to Rs. 2,108.56 crore as against Rs. 1,449.05 crore in the corresponding quarter.
Pantaloons’ revenue was also up by 64.41 percent to Rs. 1,093.74 crore as against Rs. 665.22 crore in the corresponding quarter of the last year, achieving its ‘highest-ever quarterly revenues’.
In addition to the fast fashion retailer Pantaloons, the company’s portfolio of top brands includes Louis Philippe, Van Heusen, Allen Solly and Peter England. As of 30th September 2022, it has a total of 3,593 stores.
The importance of omnichannel and digital as growth drivers is only increasing. All throughout the portfolio, the company’s e-commerce revenues increased by 24 percent Y-o-Y. One of the nation’s largest omni-enabled fashion networks, its 1600+ outlets have consistently improved its omnichannel coverage.
The innerwear and athleisure segment achieved 27 per cent revenue growth Y-o-Y and expects the quarter to exit with 30,400 trade outlets and 111 stores.
The youth fashion segment consisting of American Eagle and Forever 21, continued to show robust growth of over 50 per cent Y-o-Y.
Super-premium brands, comprising of the multi-brand format ‘The Collective’ and others continued the strong momentum with revenue growing by 35 per cent Y-o-Y.
E-commerce revenue witnessed 100 per cent growth over the same quarter last year.
With the opening of a first-ever exclusive brand store in New York and Tasva’s expansion plan for 70 stores, the company’s ethnic business seems like a really bright segment ahead. Also, it grew 90 per cent Y-o-Y over pre-Covid sales.
The company closed the quarter with net debt of Rs. 243 crore at a consolidated level as against Rs. 504 crore at the end of March FY ’22.
Accelerated urbanisation, sustained income growth and the need for a sophisticated shopping experience worked well for ABFRL’S portfolio of brands and fuelled growth. Additionally the company stated in a statement that seeing buoyant demand and a positive start to the holiday season, the outlook seems optimistic about the overall consumption of fashion products for the rest of the year. Through millions of loyal customers, a proven execution track record, the strength of its brands, and a comprehensive portfolio play, ABFRL continues to see strong growth opportunities ahead.
