Angela BarnesPets at Home reported “stronger than expected growth” on Tuesday and a “continuing increase in active customers” – as more people became pet owners during the pandemic.
The group reported revenue growth of 18.0% to £677.6m for the 28-week period to 7 October 2021, while like-for-like (LFL) revenue was up 22.2%, or 28.6% on a two-year basis.
Moreover, group underlying profit was up 77.2% to £70.2m, with growth of 68.3% on a two-year basis.
“The stronger than expected and continuing growth in the pet population over the past 18 months is materially increasing the size of our addressable market,” the company said in its report.
“In conjunction with our continued strong performance and good progress across strategic initiatives, we now see a pathway to £2.3bn of customer revenue across our business over the medium term, compared to the £1.4bn achieved last year.”
New clients
In the financial update, the company said the number of puppy and kitten club members grew 107% year-on-year with members typically spending a third more per year across the group compared to non-members.
It also noted that new client registrations across its First Opinion veterinary practices averaged approximately 10,000 per week, comprising approximately 10% of all veterinary visits.
Moreover, the number of pet care plan subscriptions across the business grew 45% year-on-year to more than 1.4 million, generating in excess of £110m in annualised recurring customer revenue, it said.
Trading outlook
The retailer said there would be no change to its full-year guidance, with underlying pre-tax profit anticipated to be at the top end of the current range of analyst expectations.
“The vast majority of our product range is sourced domestically on long lead times and is neither perishable nor seasonal. Inventory levels across our distribution centres are good, with range breadth in stores and online enabling good levels of product substitution, where required,” Pets at Home said.
“We have, to date, managed the challenges around the cost and availability of shipping containers well, and we utilise a small number of HGVs and in-house drivers to support our overall logistics requirement. Our competitive reward structure and clear focus on wellbeing gives us a high level of colleague retention,” it added.
The company said its next scheduled update will be on the 26 January next year.
Shares in the retailer were up 6.3% at 487.20p on Tuesday morning following the update.
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