excellent 4c report .. Strong Christmas trading leads to record...

excellent 4c report ..

Strong Christmas trading leads to record sales revenue Shoply Limited (ASX: SHP) is pleased to present its consolidated Quarterly Cash Flow Report for the quarter ended 31 December 2014.
Key highlights include:
 Record sales revenue of $4.9 million for the quarter – up 41% quarter-on-quarter
 Cash receipts up 42% to $5.1 million for the quarter
 Positive operating cash flow achieved – inflow of $0.37 million compared to an outflow of $0.56 million in the previous quarter
 Gross margins over the quarter were 20.6% - up from 12.4% in the previous quarter
 Systems and staff performed above expectations over the peak period, and customer satisfaction remains high
 Shoply reaffirms its revenue forecast of $18.0 million in FY15, up 987% on FY14

Commenting on the result, Shoply’s CEO Simon Crean said: “The continued positive results achieved this quarter highlight the progress that Shoply is making as a pure play online retailer.
We are pleased to say that our organic and acquisitive growth strategy continues to perform, providing an ongoing growth platform for the Company.
Whilst the Christmas trading period was a significant driver of sales growth over the quarter, we also implemented a successful television advertising campaign which was a first for the company. The advertising campaign targeted regional areas that are under-serviced by traditional bricks and mortar competitors, and we were satisfied with the return on investment achieved.
In addition to strong sales growth, we are also beginning to see the benefits of our operational cost reduction program that was implemented during the quarter, and as a result we have been able to achieve a positive operating cash flow for the period.
This result highlights the scalability of the Shoply business model, and is a further endorsement of our dual-track growth strategy in order to achieve scale.
The Company remains very well positioned to continue its aggressive growth strategy in order to grow revenues and build to a profitable operational scale.

Strong Christmas sales period Cash receipts from customers were up 42% on the previous quarter to $5.1 million (Q1: $3.6 million). Sales during the quarter were $4.9 million (Q1: $3.5 million).
This was boosted by a successful television advertising campaign targeting regional areas that are underserviced by traditional bricks and mortar competitors. It was pleasing for the business that the systems and staff were able to comfortably manage higher volumes, highlighting the scalability of Shoply’s operations.
Positive operating cash flow Net operating cash inflow for the quarter was $0.37 million – a positive turnaround of $0.93 million compared to the operating cash outflow of $0.56 million in the previous quarter.
This result was driven by increased sales and reduced operating costs. Staff costs for the quarter declined 26 % through a reduction of headcount in Melbourne, and migration of overlapping functions to Sydney.
This resulted in a lower cost of operation, freeing up cash for increased investment in marketing activities. Increased cash at bank 31 December 2014 cash at bank was $3.2million, up 10 % from the September quarter ($2.9 million).

Outlook Shoply reaffirms it is on target to achieve $18 million in sales revenue this financial year. Although it is anticipated that the current quarter will decline from the December quarter due to slower post-Christmas retail activity, Shoply will still generate growth on the September trading quarter in the current quarter.
This demonstrates continued quarterly growth on a normalised, non-seasonal basis. Shoply’s CEO Simon Crean said: “We remain very excited about the growth prospects for Shoply.
The focus going forward will continue to be on growing organic revenues, whilst acquiring complementary businesses to grow revenues and build to a profitable operational scale. Shoply continues to explore the market for further suitable acquisitions and remains in numerous discussions with other parties.
We anticipate being able to provide an update to shareholders on this progress in the near future. We look forward to continuing to build on the momentum that Shoply has generated over the past twelve months as a pure online retailer, and capitalising on the growth in online shopping in Australia.”