7 May 2019 07:00
7 May 2019
Koovs plc
("Koovs" or the "Company")
Trading Update
Positive momentum and growth resumed
Koovs plc (AIM: KOOV), the Western fashion experts for online Indian consumers, is pleased to provide an update on its trading performance for the 12 months to 31 March 2019.
Key Highlights
· Gross Order Value ("GOV") stood at £12.8m (FY 2018: £14.8m)
· H2 GOV increased to £8.0m (H2 2018: £6.9m)
· Trading margin increased to 18% (FY2018: 14%)
· Web traffic up 50% at 75.9m compared to 2018
· Social media base increased to 2.7m followers
Over the last 18 months, the Board has demonstrated its experience and expertise, taking the decisions necessary to protect the Koovs brand and to conserve resources during a period of turmoil caused by demonetisation and the implementation of Goods and Services Tax (GST); this included reducing marketing costs and stock levels. The business has now emerged from this period and is well positioned to deliver on its growth strategy. This is evidenced in the first three months of calendar 2019 with GOV increasing by 67% to £4.4m compared to the same period in 2018.
Separately, the Company has today announced that it has reached a binding agreement, subject to shareholder approval, with Future Lifestyle Fashions Limited ("FLFL"), part of Future Group, on the mechanics for which FLFL will invest the balance of additional funding of approximately £10.5 million into the Company, the proceeds of which will be used to support Koovs' growth strategy. Please refer to the Company's RNS this morning for further information.
Lord Waheed Alli, Chairman of Koovs, commented: "Koovs has been through challenging times over the last couple of years. Mary and the team have taken the decisive actions necessary to help navigate through these disruptions further highlighting the resilience of our business model and the strength of the team. With the support of our shareholders, the team is now driving the business forward and we are confident we can achieve strong growth this financial year. I would like to personally thank everyone for all their hard work and dedication throughout this testing time."
Mary Turner, Koovs' Chief Executive Officer, added: "The external factors that disrupted our business are now firmly behind us. We have deployed the funds raised in 2018 to resume marketing activities and expand the product range - this was the driving force behind the growth in sales and trading margin experienced in the second half of the year. We are now building on this positive momentum and are starting to deliver the growth we always believed the Company is capable of."
END
For further information please contact:
Koovs plc
Mary Turner / Robert Pursell
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7151 0170
Strand Hanson Limited (Nominated & Financial Adviser)
James Harris / Ritchie Balmer / Georgia Langoulant
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7409 3494
Whitman Howard Limited (Corporate Broker)
Nick Lovering (Corporate) / Mark Murphy (Institutional Sales)
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7659 1234
Media enquiries:
Newgate Communications
Adam Lloyd / Fiona Norman
Tel: +44 (0)20 3757 6880
Koovs@newgatecomms.com
The information contained within this announcement is considered to be inside information prior to its release, as defined in Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation No.596/2014 and is disclosed in accordance with the Company's obligations under Article 17 of those Regulations.
Notes to Editors:
About Koovs
· Koovs is a UK business that has built KOOVS.COM into India's leading online western fashion destination. Koovs' fashion brands are designed and developed in London exclusively for the young Indian fashion market where two thirds of the population are under the age of 35. It has 2.7m online social followers.
· The tremendous potential of the Indian fashion market has been further underlined by the Strategic Partnership with Future Lifestyle Fashions Limited (FLFL) which is part of Future Group - one of India's leading retail businesses and one of the top 10 fashion apparel companies in the world
· Koovs' proprietary online technology platform powers KOOVS.COM and is a proven market-leading success in India's rapidly expanding e-commerce market. The capability and scalability of the platform has been recognised by FLFL which has contracted Koovs to build and maintain the online platform for its Brand Factory retail format. For more information, please visit www.koovs.com and follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter @mykoovs and Instagram @koovsfashion.