Allbirds losses widen despite record quarterly sales

Footwear and apparel brand Allbirds has reported widening losses despite record revenue in the fourth quarter boosted by strong Christmas sales.

The San Francisco-based company reported net revenue of 97.2 million dollars in the fourth quarter ending December 21, an increase of 23 percent compared to a year earlier and an increase of 43 percent compared to two years earlier, prior to the outbreak of the pandemic.

The company, which last year went public, said Q4 was its highest sales quarter to date thanks to a “remarkable” holiday season, which included the two biggest sales days in its history.

The strong sales results brought Allbirds’ annual revenue to 277.5 million dollars, a year-over-year increase of 27 percent, and a year-over-two-year increase of 43 percent.

But it wasn’t all great news, as the company's fourth-quarter net loss widened to 10.4 million dollars from 9.4 million dollars in the fourth quarter of 2020, and its full-year net loss came in at 45.4 million dollars compared to 25.9 million dollars a year earlier.

But Allbirds made a full-year adjusted EBITDA loss of 11.7 million dollars, an improvement from the loss of 15.4 million dollars it posted a year earlier.

“We are pleased to report a strong finish to 2021, with Q4 representing our largest revenue quarter on record, headlining financial performance ahead of our guidance targets,” said co-founder and co-CEO Joey Zwillinger in a statement.

“Our results reflect strong global demand for the Allbirds brand and best-in-class execution by our teams during a period of ongoing macro challenges.”

Looking ahead, the company expects 2022 net revenue of between 355 million dollars and 365 million dollars, representing growth of between 28 percent and 32 percent compared to 2021.

It expects an adjusted EBITDA loss of between 9 million dollars to 13 million dollars.

Allbirds was founded in 2016 by Zwillinger, an industrial engineer, alongside former soccer player Tim Brown.

It was initially established as an online brand selling exclusively footwear but has since expanded into apparel and physical retail.

The company is known for its use of regenerative and natural materials including FSC-certified eucalyptus tree fibre and SweetFoam, a proprietary innovation made with sugarcane.