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Sosandar revenues jumps 142% as losses narrow in FY22
Image Credit: https://www.sosandar.com/ Sosandar co-founders Ali Hall, left, and Julie Lavington, right.

Sosandar revenues jumps 142% as losses narrow in FY22

On this episode of Talking Shop I’m joined by Alain Bejjani—former Group CEO of Middle East retail giant Majid Al Futtaim, and author of the definitive new book, NEXT: Leading Through the New Realities. Drawing on his childhood in war-torn Beirut, and his experience steering a $9.5bn dollar retail and lifestyle empire through a global pandemic, Alain brings an unmatched perspective on leadership under pressure. Today, we break down his crisis survival playbook for retailers operating in distress. We discuss why resilience must always outpace efficiency, the four assets a brand must protect at all costs, and how to turn macro-turmoil into a long-term direction that scales.

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Sosandar has seen its revenues rocket 142% to £29.5m in the year ended 31 march, 2022, in what it dubbed a “milestone year” for the group. 

This included three consecutive months of “record” revenue in September, October and November 2021, as the group welcomed an “exceptionally strong” financial performance, exceeding market expectations that were upgraded in April 2022, with nine consecutive months of profitability now delivered.

During the period, EBITDA improved “significantly” to a £0.2m loss, up from a £2.9m loss in FY21, with every month in H2 FY22 being profitable.

In addition, there was an increase in gross margin to 56%, up from 48% the prior year, reflecting a return to normal trading conditions following the impact of the covid pandemic.

The group has also welcomed a “very strong start to Q1 FY23 with revenue of £10.4m, representing a record quarter and an increase of 81% against Q1 FY22.

Current trading is said to be in-line with market expectations, with strong performance on both own site and third-parties.

Ali Hall and Julie Lavington, co-CEOs, said: “We are incredibly proud to be reporting another period of sustained growth for Sosandar. It is thanks to our well-planned approach, together with our entrepreneurial, agile culture that we have delivered a significant increase in revenue, as well as moving into month-on-month profitability. 

“This is an important milestone for us, and having achieved it we are now better positioned than ever for further success. Notwithstanding the current macro-economic environment, trading in the new financial year has started very well, with a record quarter for sales and three further consecutive months of profitability.”

They added: “Looking ahead, we are excited for the next stage of our growth. Our winning formula is evident in our results and over the next year we will focus on expanding our product range and continuing to drive growth through our own site and third parties. Return rates are in line with our expectations across the product range and our costs continue to be carefully managed. 

“We continue to expand and diversify our supplier base to support our growth expectations whilst further mitigating risk. As we have done over the past two years, we will continue to use our agility and detailed planning to manage the business effectively, as we move forward on our journey to becoming one of the largest womenswear brands globally.”

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