By Sabela Ojea
Ocado Group PLC stated Tuesday that it enjoyed strong underlying demand during the fourth quarter fiscal 2021, but retail revenue fell in the changing post-lockdown environment in Britain.
According to the online retailer and retail-technology specialist, retail revenue fell to 547.8m pounds ($723.8m) in the 13 weeks ending Nov. 18, from GBP570.1m a year ago.
Comparing to pre-Covid-19 levels in the same period, 2019, retail revenue rose by GBP416.2 million
According to FTSE 100, the company’s average orders per week were stronger due to a 22% increase of active customers to 832,000.
It was however hit by labor shortages, cost inflation related to utility price increases, dry-ice shortages and the fact that the average basket value fell 12%, to GBP118, as consumers spent less time at their homes after returning to the office.
It also said that the company was affected by capacity constraints. The company added that it will invest GBP50 million more in 2022 to support its long term growth.
Ocado stated that fiscal 2021 full-year results are expected to be in line guidance and that it anticipates strong, mid-teens revenue growth for 2022, at the peak of the historical pre-pandemic range between 10%-15%.
Sabela Obea, @sabelaojeaguix