Weird Fish reports record year following “digital overhaul”

UK lifestyle clothing brand Weird Fish has reported a leap in EBITDA for 2021 from 1.8 million pounds to 4.2 million pounds year-on-year, after investing in its digital capabilities.

Thanks to its “digital overhaul,” Weird Fish achieved sales revenue of 35 million pounds in the year to December 31, 2021, up 71 percent compared to 2020, as a result of strong online sales.

Overall e-commerce revenue was 21 million pounds in 2021, nearly doubling year-on-year, compared to 12 million pounds in 2020. Weird Fish also reported that it drove more revenue online in November 2021 compared to the whole of 2019, when it took 7 million pounds.

John Stockton, managing director at Weird Fish, said in a statement: “Our digital overhaul has been central to Weird Fish’s success and helped establish the brand as a digital leader and innovator in the retail industry.

“Online demand has continued to skyrocket since the pandemic, so we knew we needed to remain agile and adapt our channels to continue being relevant and appealing to our customers. Understanding our customer needs has been central to informing our digital investment strategy, so our customer data and experience management platform, Exponea has been essential in helping us gain high-quality audience data.”

Weird Fish 2021 sales up 71 percent compared to 2020

As part of its digital investment, Weird Fish has been improving its website, which saw its biggest year of traffic to date last year, with more than 13 million visits and 74 million page views. It also saw active customers increase by 136 percent between 2020 and 2021.

Last year, Weird Fish also launched a new click and collect service, live chat facility, new blog, and introduced new payment methods, as well as launching its first TV advert, as its marketing video content doubled in 2021.

Investment in its digital capabilities will continue into 2022, added Weird Fish, including launching a new business-to-business platform for wholesale customers and ongoing enhancements of its website platform.

Stockton added: “Our team’s resilience continued to pay off throughout 2021 as we fought our way through endless challenges, from supply chain disruptions to sky high shipping costs.

“Despite it being another exceptionally difficult year for the retail industry, we are proud to have celebrated another record-breaking year and are ready to face new and exciting challenges and opportunities in 2022.”

Weird Fish to continue to drive sustainability in 2022

Weird Fish will also be continuing its focus on enhancing its sustainability credentials in line with its ‘The Only Way Is Ethics’ policy. In 2021, the brand sold nearly a quarter of a million garments made from organic cotton, with year-on-year sales of bamboo fabric seeing an uplift of 164 percent.

For 2022, the brand plans to widen its use of more sustainable fabrics across its entire range, including swapping all its conventional cotton products with organic cotton and replacing most of its polyester with recycled PET.

Weird Fish is a multi-channel retailer offering clothing and accessories for men and women, with 15 branded stores, 300 stockists and an online channel.