DGAP-News: zooplus AG: robust sales growth continues in the third quarter

zooplus AG: robust sales growth continues in the third quarter

• Growth of 18% in the third quarter contributes to total sales of more than EUR 1.5bn in the first nine months of 2021
• Large and loyal customer base as sustainable growth driver: revenue retention rate up at 98%
• Strategic partnership with H&F and EQT to fully capture long-term growth opportunities to be closed shortly
• Additional acceptance period for Zorro Bidco offer runs until November 22, 2021 (24:00 hrs CET); delisting of zooplus shares announced
• Sales guidance remains unchanged, EBITDA guidance reduced due to one-off transaction costs in a double-digit million EUR amount

Munich, November 16, 2021 - zooplus AG, Europe's leading online pet platform, continued its strong performance in the third quarter of 2021: the company increased its Q3 sales by 18% to EUR 514.0m (Q3 2020: EUR 436.4m) resulting in total sales of EUR 1,516.2m in the first nine months of 2021 (9M 2020: EUR 1,298.9m). zooplus' sustainable topline growth continues to be driven by the company's large and loyal customer base: the revenue retention rate was at 98% compared to 97% in the first nine months of 2020. The company's high-margin own brands business contributed 17.6% to total sales (9M 2020: 15.8%).

"We are looking back on a strong development of our business in the first nine month of 2021. With our robust growth pace, loyal customer base, and two strong partners at our side, we are about to open a new chapter for zooplus. The strategic partnership with Hellman & Friedman and EQT will allow us to use our pole position in the European pet space to further accelerate our efforts to win the growing and fast-evolving category in the long run as we will be able to substantially invest into an even better user experience for our customers, best-in-class logistics and new service and product offerings", said Dr. Cornelius Patt, CEO of zooplus.

Stable gross margin, strong free cash flow
The gross profit amounted to EUR 456.4m, corresponding to a gross margin of 30.1% (9M 2020: EUR 396.3m; 30.5%). Due to one-off transaction costs in a double-digit million Euro amount related to the voluntary public takeover offer by Zorro Bidco S.à r.l., the investment vehicle by Hellman & Friedman ("H&F") in support of EQT Private Equity ("EQT"), EBITDA accounted for EUR 15.4m resulting in an EBITDA margin of 1.0% (9M 2020: EUR 47.8m; 3.7%). The free cash flow increased to EUR 94.2m, compared to EUR 52.8m in the same period of the previous year.

Strategic partnership with H&F and EQT to be closed shortly
On November 4, 2021, zooplus announced that the voluntary public takeover offer by Zorro Bidco exceeded the minimum acceptance threshold of 50% plus one share. The additional acceptance period still runs until November 22, 2021. The final settlement of the offer by Zorro Bidco will take place shortly afterwards, as all regulatory clearances have already been obtained by Zorro Bidco. The public delisting tender offer which was announced by Zorro Bidco on November 8, 2021, is supported by the Management Board of zooplus.

"We are very pleased that a vast majority of our shareholders share our conviction that the partnership with Hellman & Friedman and EQT will support our ambition to build an even more successful and customer-oriented zooplus. Our shareholders had the unique chance to realize an attractive premium of 85 percent to the unaffected 3-months VWAP of zooplus. For us - the company and its employees - this partnership provides the opportunity to once again accelerate our unique pan-European growth story as the partnership increases our financial leeway to invest significantly in our business", said Andreas Maueröder, CFO of zooplus.

Update on 2021 guidance due to one-off transaction costs
The voluntary public takeover offer by Zorro Bidco will incur one-off transaction costs in a double-digit million Euro amount. On November 4, 2021, the Management Board therefore announced to reduce its earnings guidance and is currently expecting an EBITDA for the full financial year 2021 in the range of EUR 20m and EUR 35m, after previously expecting a range of EUR 40m to EUR 80m. The sales guidance for the full financial year 2021 remains unchanged in the range of EUR 2.04bn to EUR 2.14bn.

 

Key financial highlights:

Company profile:
zooplus AG is the leading online pet platform in Europe measured by sales. Founded as a German start-up in 1999, the company's business model has been successfully launched internationally, dedicated to the mission of creating moments of happiness between pets and pet parents across now 30 European countries. With a large and relevant product offering in the pet food and pet care & accessories range, zooplus caters to more than 8 million pet parents across Europe of which more than 5 million made more than two orders in 2020. The product range includes renowned international brands, popular local brand names as well as high-quality, exclusive own brand lines for pet food, accessories, care products, toys and much else for dogs, cats, birds, hamsters, horses and many other furry and non-furry friends. In addition, zooplus customers benefit from exclusive loyalty programs, best value for money proposition, fast and reliable delivery as well as a seamless digital shopping experience, combined with a variety of interactive content and community offerings. Sales totalled more than EUR 1.8bn in the 2020 financial year, capturing roughly 7% of the around EUR 28bn to EUR 29bn (net) European pet supplies market, both offline and online combined.

For further information about zooplus, please visit investors.zooplus.com or our international shop site at zooplus.com.

Press / Investor relations contact:
zooplus AG
Diana Apostol
Sonnenstraße 15
80331 Munich
Phone: + 49 (0) 89 95006-210
Fax: + 49 (0) 89 95006-503
Email: ir@zooplus.com | press@zooplus.com
Website: https://investors.zooplus.com