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Redbubble (ASX: RBL) is back in the black this half thanks to increased consumer demand for its customisable apparel, stationery and homewares.
After reporting a NPAT loss of $3 million in 1H FY20 and an $8.8 million full year loss at the end of the last financial year, the company has rebounded to report a $41 million profit during the latest half.
Both of RBL's marketplaces, Redbubble and TeePublic, saw growth in the half, leading to marketplace revenue nearly doubling to $353 million and gross profit more than doubling to hit $144 million in the half.
The results were achieved despite the entire company operating remotely since April 2020.
Despite the strong results, shares in RBL have crashed in early trade by more than 12 per cent.
The e-commerce retailer saw consistently strong customer demand into the peak holiday season, during which the company increased paid acquisition spend to capture more customers profitably.
Growth rates were seen across all geographies and product categories too, even as mask demand moderated to 7 per cent of overall product mix during the second quarter. T-shirts still dominate as the largest product segment for the company, with sales representing 33 per cent of total revenue.
However, because of an "uncertain future macro environment", Redbubble's board does not expect to pay a dividend in the short to medium term.
"The strategic priority for the group now is to ensure we extend the market leadership we have established," Redbubble CEO Michael Ilczynski said.
"We intend to invest in both the artist and customer experiences, to improve loyalty and retention and to ensure long-term growth."
During the half, 572,000 artists made sales across both the RedBubble and TeePublic marketplaces, and $65 million was paid to artist (up 95 per cent year on year).
Similarly, customer numbers expanded during the period by 69 per cent, with the company now boasting 6.2 million unique customers.
Shares in RBL are down 12.95 per cent to $6.10 per share at 10.09am AEDT.
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