India's Shoppers Stop swings to profit on higher beauty products demand

Shoppers Stop

26/04/2023 16:39

BENGALURU, April 26 (Reuters) - India's Shoppers Stop Ltd  SHOP.NS 
reported a quarterly profit from a year-ago loss on Wednesday, as the department
store operator benefited from strong demand for beauty products and higher
margin private-label clothing.
    High-income shoppers splurged on clothes and accessories as they returned to
their pre-pandemic lifestyles, especially during the wedding season between
January and March. Cooling inflation and some softening in raw-material costs
also helped. 
    The company reported a consolidated net profit of 142.6 million rupees
($1.74 million) for the quarter ended March 31, compared with a loss of 158.5
million rupees a year ago.
      Average selling prices rose by 9%, while revenue stood at 9.24 billion
rupees, up nearly 30% from a year ago.
    "This is the highest sales and sales growth, with all key performance
indicators consistently improving," Venu Nair, managing director and chief
executive of Shoppers Stop, said in a statement.
     Revenue for Shoppers Stop's beauty segment – which houses brands like
L'Oreal, Clarins and Earthi, as well as its private label Arcelia – grew 29% to
1.97 billion rupees, compared with 18% growth in the previous quarter.
    The company has also been focussing on private-label apparel to drive up its
margins. 
    Revenue from this business, which houses brands such as STOP, Fratini and
Bandeya, grew 35% to 1.58 billion rupees, compared with a 23% growth in the
previous quarter.
    As of March 31, the company had 142 beauty stores across the country,
compared to 98 department stores.

 (Reporting by Navamya Ganesh Acharya in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema and
Pooja Desai)
 ((Navamya.GaneshAcharya@thomsonreuters.com; +91 8805175330 ;))