“Stick to the Basics and Win the Fight” – A Look at MyDeal’s Last 12 Months

Last week, the online retailer hit one million active customers, with these returning shoppers making up 61 percent of total purchases. “[One million Active Customers] is a huge number is something to be very proud of, but I think that over the past 12 months there’s been so much happen in the business,” says Ryan Gracie, the Chief Marketing Officer at MyDeal.

In the last 12 months, MyDeal has undergone a rapid transformation. Its rebrand, which took place in August 2021, revealed a self-described ‘bold and energetic’ identity. As part of the rebrand, MyDeal has seen a series of changes, but it’s not just cosmetic, as Gracie explains.

“We’ve seen some great results from that repositioning of MyDeal, and also just really ramping up that look and feel and building the personality into the brand,” he says. “Now we’ve increased our presence through the in-stock business, both through our third-party brands and also our private label.”

“By just having a brand that looks more polished, that looks fresh and modern and evokes a certain, and then we found that we are getting more and more customers come through the door and they’re staying more loyal to us,” he says.

As part of the brand refresh, MyDeal launched its first TVC, which aired three months ago. The ‘MyDeal It’ tagline aims to get stuck in your head, and it cetainly met the brief. “We built that campaign with longevity in mind,” says Gracie. “We built many versions of that campaign and we believe that we can roll that out for a period to come before it gets too stale.” While the ad hasn’t been on air for a short while, MyDeal plans “to bring it back and get it stuck back into people’s heads.”

Last week, MyDeal reported an 18.5 percent increase on pcp to $83.1 million. According to the business, this is the highest reported result for the company. While its HY results will be shared later in February, the business has reported a strong start to the CY – a 44 percent increase in Gross Sales for January.

However, even with an increase in sales and ongoing growth, the ASX share prices don’t seem to show the same results. Over the last few weeks, the E-Com Index has taken a nosedive. While many factors have contributed to this rollercoaster, volatility on the ASX has shown that investors are cautious about the future. This is especially evident as traditional retail bounces back after months of lockdown and restrictions.

But Gracie isn’t worried.

“I think that investors are going through a very volatile period at the moment,” he tells us. “We look at inflation around the world; we look at the aggression that’s happening between Russia, Ukraine. This is all at a very high macro level, but you also look at results from Facebook and other tech giants that seem to be falling a little.

“… and then the e-com sector, which is relatively small in comparison to all of those gets thrown into that basket where that volatility really hits home, because of the smaller market caps of the businesses in that Index. So it just feels like at the moment across the broader market, there is a great reset that is happening. And probably a reset that had to happen was that buoyancy and that tailwind of totally is certainly coming off,” he says.

In recent weeks, MyDeal has remained robust in its share prices, compared to its competitors. “We’ve been able to be very resilient with our share price,” Gracie continues. “Fortunately, we’re still in a better position than we were six months ago.”

In the last five days, the retailer’s share prices have increased 2.56 percent to $0.60 a share, but its overall prices have fluctuated throughout the year, shedding 20 percent compared to the same time in 2021.

What’s driven this recent increase in confidence from shareholders? “I think that’s recognition from the market; we are potentially undervalued with our share prices and value against other players; where we have more active customers; where we do similar GT; where we have loyalty,” he says.

Underneath this growth, there have been a lot of challenges, too. Like most retailers, the biggest painpoint has been logistics and last-mile. “I think the biggest challenge for e-com at the moment would be the last mile, the delivery networks and consumers had high expectations,” says Gracie. “And so they should. What’s happening is that there are just too many constraints within that last mile, getting the audit to the customer. We just have not been able to keep up with the increase in demand over the past couple of years.”

So, what’s next for MyDeal? Will the retailer tap into any of the trends that have emerged in the last 12 months? “There have been many fads that come and go – I call them fads because at the time, you know, they become the buzzword that often they just don’t eventuate,” he explains. “And I think that we’re seeing some of those now.”

Social selling is a huge trend in the Asian market, as Gracie explains, which may eventually travel into Australian waters. However, just because it’s huge in one market doesn’t mean it will translate well here. “We have tried to make it work here in Australia, but I just don’t if we have the scale to deliver the right audience that will make it worthwhile; to deliver that ROI. I think that we’ll all have a crack at try and make it work, but actually getting enough eyeballs is going to be the real challenge in this country,” he says.

For now, MyDeal plans to stay to what they know. “Stick to the basics and we often win the fight,” Gracie says.

The e-commerce landscape is changing. With a Power Retail Switched On membership, you get access to current e-commerce revenue and forecasting, traffic levels, average conversion rate, payment preferences and more!