German online fashion retailer Zalando said on Wednesday it was well prepared for a second coronavirus wave after it reported better-than-expected profitability due to an “exceptionally” strong spring and summer season.
Third-quarter adjusted operating profit came in at 118 million euros ($137 million) on sales up 22% to 1.8 billion euros, compared to average analyst forecasts for 88 million and 1.86 billion respectively.
The profit figure was flattered by the one-off impact of changes to inventory valuation worth 35 million euros.
It confirmed a full-year outlook it raised last month for adjusted operating profit of between 375 and 425 million euros and for sales to grow 20-22%.
“As the second coronavirus wave is starting more forcefully than anticipated, we are much better prepared than earlier in the year,” said finance chief David Schroeder.
Zalando said it hoped to triple the number of brick-and-mortar stores that can sell across its platform in 2021, adding it has expanded the program to Denmark, Finland and Norway this month, with five more countries to follow in 2021.
Europe’s biggest pure online fashion retailer said the number of active customers rose almost 21% to 35.6 million, while the average order size was up 2.4% to 57.2 euros.
