Mumbai: Footwear brand Bata India Limited announced results for the quarter ended 31st December 2021. Backed by improved sales during the festive season and re-opening of the economy, Revenue from Operations for the quarter stood at Rs. 8,413 million and profit before tax was Rs. 972.79 million as against the profit before tax of Rs. 500 million in the quarter ended September 30, 2021, showcasing resilient & sustainable recovery.
The Company continued the focus on key thrust areas of franchise & MBO expansion, consumer-relevant communication, portfolio casualization and digital footprint expansion. All these have increased footfalls across retail outlets, along with significant growth driven via e-commerce platforms and expansion in Tier 3-5 towns. This resulted in revenue moving ahead of pre-pandemic levels. Despite the uncertainties because of the 3rd wave towards the end of the quarter, we are optimistically looking forward to faster recovery post the wave subsiding.
The Company continued to optimize its retail network and look for cost-savings across rentals & operations, manufacturing, and drive efficiencies in its value chain. All the cost-focused initiatives that have been put in place across multiple work streams continue to gain momentum and have shown positive impact quarter on quarter.
The sales through digitally-enabled channels continued their momentum driven by 3 levers – D2C bata.in the e-store, Marketplaces and Omnichannel Home Delivery and contributed Rs 90 Crores to total sales which were more than double of pre-covid levels.
The continued growth of the sneaker category led to the growth recovery when compared to the rest of the other categories. The Sneaker Studio pilot was scaled up across the country to display up to 300 styles across 9 brands. 1st sneaker campaign was rolled out to drive a new portfolio, which led to an increase in sneaker & casual style contribution in the sales mix. Basis the strong growth, the Sneaker Studio visual merchandising concept is being expanded to more stores during the next quarters.
Marketing campaign investments were dialled up with 2 large ATL & digital campaigns behind ‘Surprisingly Bata’ & ‘Unlimited Sneakers at Bata’. Bollywood actor Disha Patani was onboarded as a brand ambassador to inspire Indian Youth with our new Sneaker, Casual & Fashion collections.
Commenting on the financial results, Gunjan Shah, MD and CEO – of Bata India Limited, stated,“In this quarter, we saw significant improvement in customer sentiment. Additionally, we kept expanding our reach through new franchise stores & multi-brand outlets. We opened 34 new Franchise stores, expanded availability via a Distribution channel that scaled up to 1000+ towns. We have enhanced our portfolio in the casual category led by Hush Puppies, Bata Red Label and renewed the sneaker category with North Star & Power styles. With consumers preferring sneakers, we strengthened our sneaker proposition by rolling out our new ‘Sneaker Studios’ to display up to 300 styles, 9 brands in stores & on bata.in, our first sneakers campaign and expanding availability across all stores. Sneakers thus led the growth recovery in the quarter while formal & fashion also recovered significantly. We continued the upshift in marketing investments with new ‘Surprisingly Bata Festive’ & ‘Unlimited Sneakers at Bata’ campaigns which elevated our consumer connect. We also reached 100% full vaccination in all our eligible employees across locations during the quarter.”
“Simultaneously, we continued our strong focus on cost-savings measures across our network, controlling discretionary spending and enhancing productivity. These measures have laid the foundation that will help us capture the emerging consumer demand efficiently. Innovation via agile product creation, scaling up digital channels, expansion in Tier 3-5 towns, and productivity enhancement will continue to be a priority along with the safety of our employees and customers. Owing to decline in Covid cases and vaccine rollout for 15 to 18 age group, we optimistically look forward to a quick rebound in consumer sentiments,” he added.
