display
Berlin (dpa) - The online fashion retailer Zalando is not assuming that the online boom in the fashion trade and its own growth will end anytime soon, despite the falling infection rate.
"We have already observed the trend towards online demand over the past ten years," said CFO David Schröder on Thursday when the Berlin company's quarterly figures were presented.
"This trend accelerated during the crisis and is definitely not over yet."
After the company initially weakened at the beginning of the crisis last year, it has grown rapidly since then.
In the first quarter, revenues rose by almost 47 percent to 2.2 billion euros, as the company announced on Thursday in Berlin.
Zalando earned 34.5 million euros net.
In addition to the high demand, lower returns also played into the cards for the Berlin company.
In the previous year there was a loss of 86.4 million euros.
display
In the weak quarter of the previous year, the corona crisis struck for the first time and temporarily clouded consumers' desire to buy.
In addition, special depreciation had burdened the inventory.
Zalando is now one of the beneficiaries of the pandemic.
The number of active customers rose to almost 42 million in the first three months of this year.
That was around a third more than a year ago.
The company is now also serving the increasing demand for used clothing and launched its own second-hand platform a year ago.
Around 250,000 articles have so far been sold, the company said.
How large the share of total sales is remained unknown.
Anyone who sells their used clothing there can donate the purchase price or receive it in the form of a voucher.
This is how Zalando keeps customers in their own system.
display
Zalando does not only earn money with private customers: It advertises brands and stationary retailers who offer their products on the platform.
The retailers hit by the crisis, whose stores are still closed, were given the opportunity to sell online with a high range, said Schröder.
"We wanted to be part of the solution in the last year and in the first quarter."
Commissions for dealers were therefore waived in the past year and in the first quarter.
Now these are gradually being reintroduced.
Schröder did not initially comment on the amount.
Brands and retailers now contribute around a quarter of the so-called value of goods, i.e. the value of all goods after deducting returns and cancellations.
In the long term, this proportion should increase to 40 percent.
Zalando also offers business customers the option of shipping and logistics.
To this end, the company is expanding its own infrastructure.
Zalando wants to expand its logistics network from currently 10 to 15 logistics centers by 2023.
Another location is also to be added in Germany.
The exact location was initially not known on Thursday.
display
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210506-99-492944 / 2
Long-term strategy
Press release for the 1st quarter