Booktopia Experiences ‘Strongest December in 16-Year History’

In its 16-year history, the online bookseller has reported 728,000 units shipped in the month, and 4.2 million units shipped in 1HY FY21.

The retailer has also reported a 52 percent increase in revenue to $113 million, compared to $74.5 million in H1 FY20.

“The Christmas period saw strong demand from customers,” said Tony Nash, the CEO of Booktopia. “Our investment in additional capacity and automation allowed us to meet customer orders in a timely fashion and censured we were able to have the biggest December in the history of the company.”

The unaudited results indicate the business is trading well, Nash said, and was able to ‘quickly adapt’ during the massive shift to online shopping.

“We are confident the momentum and growth we experienced in 2020 should continue throughout the year and beyond and as a result, the business is on track to meet forecasts provided in the company’s prospectus,” Nash said.

Booktopia’s increase in trading volumes aligns with the shift to online shopping, which is consistent with other online retailers across the country.

There has been a 506 percent increase in EBITDA to $8 million, compared to $1.3 million in H1 FY20.

The Christmas period saw a ‘strong demand’ for the bookseller, but should not indicate the potential full-year result, the Board and management suggest.

Booktopia has undergone its first stage of the $20 million expansion and automation project at its Lindcombe DC in Sydney, which was completed in November. The company reports an increase in outbound activity from 30,000 to 60,000 units per day as a result of this expansion project.

Like this story? Click here to find out more about Power Retail E-Commerce Intelligence or here to sign-up for the free weekly Pulse Newsletter for more essential online retail content.