Despite not qualifying for the government’s JobKeeper program, Baby Bunting still had some good results when it comes to store and digital sales.
Total sales grew 11.8 per cent to $405.2 million and online sales, including click and collect, grew 39.1 per cent despite some initial teething problems with a new website.
Baby Bunting’s CEO and managing director, Matt Spencer, acknowledges that this year has been anything but normal and in that context the company’s performance has been very pleasing.
“Our website and digital performance has been strong and our investments in digital will continue,” he said in a statement last week.
“We have a road map to progressively transform the technologies that drive our digital channel and the ways in which our customers can interact with Baby Bunting.”
The maternity and baby goods retailer opened three new stores during the year, making it a total of 56 stores Australia wide, and the company is looking to expand its store network to 100 stores. This is up from its previous plan of over 80 stores. The aim is to open four to eight stores each year.
“While the Covid-19 pandemic has presented some unexpected challenges, we remain very focused on executing on our growth strategy. Today, I announce an expansion of our store network plan to over 100 stores. We have plans to continue to expand our private label products.
“We have expanded our services business from car seat installation into car seat hire and soon will be extending that into other product categories. We have commenced shipping to customers in New Zealand and are undertaking an assessment of that market.
“We are all adapting to the current circumstances and responding as new issues arise. However, we continue to look at the bigger picture. The strategic initiatives we are announcing today, and others being developed, are designed to set the groundwork for further growth in the years ahead,” he adds.
The retailer’s 12 Melbourne stores remain open during the second lockdown.
