Overstock.com Inc. reported a 19% decline in revenue in the most recent quarter, as compared with a year earlier, citing the impact of inflation on consumer spending.
During an earnings call with analysts, CEO Jonathan Johnson said inflation and global uncertainty caused shoppers to cut back on expenses. Referring to the war in Ukraine, “whether it was 9/11 or the Iraq war … major news events like this cause people to pause. And that seemed to have a real impact in March. April is slightly better, but it’s still difficult,” he told investors.
“But if you take out non-home items, the sales decline is 16%,” CEO Jonathan Johnson told investors during the online retailer’s earnings call on Apr. 28. “I remain calm.”
The home goods online retailer is not surprised that pandemic-related growth has flattened out. As consumers shift their spending from the home to other expenditures, like travel, Johnson says the housing market is still strong and he expects the demand for furniture will follow.
For the three months ended Mar. 31, Overstock.com reported the company had 7.4 million active customers, a decrease of 26% year over year. Orders delivered came in at 2.4 million, a decrease of 33% year over year. Active customers are the number of people who placed orders with a company at least once in a 12-month period.
Net revenue per customer, however, increased by 25%, and average order value is up, at $221, an increase of 21% year over year.
And more customers are shopping using their mobile devices, which accounted for 50% of gross merchandise sales.
Overstock.com is No. 32 in Digital Commerce 360’s Top 1000 ranking of the leading retailers in North America.
More customers shop Overstock.com using mobile
“Mobile continues to be and is growing in importance,” Johnson told Digital Commerce 360. “We had our greatest President’s Day weekend ever during the first quarter 2022 — mobile was a big part of that.”
Johnson says mobile purchases were up 54% in Q1 2022 compared with Q4 2021. And Q4 2021 mobile purchases were up 80% compared with Q3 2021.
“Mobile adoption continues, and it’s a great way to speak to our customers,” he says. “It’s a growing piece of our business and allows us to push them more toward the mobile app.”
Johnson declined to indicate what percentage of customers use the mobile app or what percentage of sales are made within the app. But he noted that app users can use app-specific coupons and promotions, and Overstock.com plans to continue the practice for Memorial Day in May.
Looking ahead in 2022, Johnson says, “We are maintaining and taking market share and making money. What I’m really confident about is should we go into a depression and the market shrinks, we will shrink less than the market and will take market share.”
The company expects to completely exit from non-home goods categories after Mother’s and Father’s Day, which Johnson says will make it easier for Overstock.com to align its message with customers. He believes the shift away from non-home products will open up opportunities to align with new vendors to sell their products on Overstock.com.
“It’s easier for us to advertise and not confuse people,” he says. “When they come to the site, they will associate us with the home.”
For the three months ended Mar. 31, Overstock.com Inc. reported:
- Total net revenue of $536.04 million, a decrease of 19% year over year compared with $659.86 million in 2021
- Net income of $10.12 million, a decrease of 45% compared with $16.09 million year over year
- An operating income of $12.45 million, a decrease of 72% compared with $26.59 million year over year
Percentage changes may not align exactly with dollar figures due to rounding.
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