LONDON — Mytheresa‘s new year is off to a strong start, with the gross merchandise value of goods sold rising 20.8 percent to 197.9 million euros, and an adjusted EBITDA margin of 6.6 percent in the fiscal first quarter.
The company also confirmed its previous guidance for fiscal 2023, with GMV in the range of 865 million euros to 910 million euros, representing 16 to 22 percent growth. Adjusted EBITDA will be between 68 million euros and 76 million euros, with a margin of 9 to 9.5 percent.
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The medium-term is also looking rosy. Mytheresa confirmed its targets of annual GMV growth of 22 to 25 percent, and an adjusted EBITDA margin of around 9 to 10 percent.
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The shares closed up 0.3 percent at $10.28 on the New York Stock Exchange.
In an interview, the company’s chief executive officer Michael Kliger said Mytheresa’s robust performance in the quarter and “sole focus on the high-end luxury sector, both in terms of customers as well as brands, makes us foremost a luxury business and not just a digital business.”
He added that the “safest place right now is the high end of the market.” The wealthy are still shopping for events and holidays, and are buying more frequently and consistently than those who have less disposable income.
In the current economic climate, with recession hitting the big economies and job losses looming, Kliger said it’s the “more occasional shoppers” who are pulling back and postponing purchases. He said that Mytheresa was seeing “less activity” from these occasional, intermittent shoppers.
Year-on-year GMV growth was up 28.5 percent in the U.S. market, where the brand has been wooing clients with special, one-off events. Mainland China showed “very good growth” in the three-month period, and the brand is also building its team in the region.
In the three-month period, Kliger said Mytheresa also saw “high-quality” customer growth, with a 27.7 percent uptick in the number of big-spending customers. There was also a 6.5 percent increase in average spend among all customers compared with the corresponding period last year.
The top 3 percent of Mytheresa customers generate around 35 percent of sales, and the retailer lays out the red carpet for them with what it describes as “money can’t buy” experiences in luxury resorts such as Capri and St. Moritz.
The brand also partners with designers and brands on exclusive capsule collections and special collaborations, which it uses as another tool to cultivate its high-end customer base.
In September, the luxury site launched Etro’s limited-edition “Love Trotter” tote bags made from upcycled vintage fabrics and designed by the brand’s new creative director Marco de Vincenzo.
A few weeks later it released an exclusive, 29-piece Etro capsule collection inspired by ‘70s glam rock, and showcasing paisley prints exclusively designed for Mytheresa. It has also partnered with Oscar de la Renta, Pucci, and Balmain over the past year.
Kliger added that the growth in the quarter didn’t come from luxury fashion alone. The retailer’s new lifestyle and home accessories offer, Life, contributed to the 20.8 percent rise in GMV, he said.
During the first quarter results presentation, Mytheresa unveiled the creation of The China Designer Program by Mytheresa to “support and create visibility” for Chinese luxury designers, following the appointment of Steven Xu, president China and APAC, and the opening of a Mytheresa office in Shanghai earlier this year.
The capsule is meant to highlight “the best of Chinese fashion design by bringing exclusive womenswear capsules by selected Chinese designers to Mytheresa.”
The designers have been chosen by a jury, and Mytheresa plans to offer them “global exposure and unique visibility” via a media partnership with TMagazine China, as well as through Mytheresa’s
combined 2 million followers on its owned Chinese and international social media channels, and other activations and physical events.
In the past weeks, the company also released its first environment, social and governance report, which looks at its progress in the fiscal 2022 year ended June 30. It is known as the Mytheresa Positive Change Report.
The company said it made “significant progress” toward its goal to use only renewable electricity in its business, reaching 90 percent in all operations over which it has control. The majority of the Mytheresa offices are run on clean electricity.
By offsetting its CO2 emissions with Gold-Standard-certified projects, the company has reached climate neutrality for its own operations, as well as for shipments, returns and packaging. As reported, it has progressively removed furs and exotic skins from the collections it sells.
It also teamed with Vestiaire Collective on a resale service that was made available to Mytheresa’s luxury customers.
The company said it plans to publish the Mytheresa Positive Change report each year covering its performance and progress in its bid to be transparent and accountable.