SUMMARY
- FirstCry’s consolidated net loss dropped by 31% to Rs 75.68 crore in Q1 FY25 from Rs 110.42 crore in Q1 FY24.
- The company noted a growth of 10% in the operating revenue from Rs 1,496.93 crore in Q1 FY24 to Rs 1,652.07 crore in Q1 FY25.
- This financial report is the startup’s first since its listing on the stock exchanges earlier this month.
Children-focused omnichannel retailer FirstCry, under the umbrella of Brainbees Solutions, has managed to narrow its consolidated net loss by 31% to Rs 75.68 crore in the first quarter of fiscal year 2025, marking an improvement from the Rs 110.42 crore loss recorded in the same period of the previous fiscal year.
The company noted a growth of 10% in the operating revenue from Rs 1,496.93 crore in Q1 FY24, reaching Rs 1,652.07 crore during the quarter under review.
FirstCry’s losses grew by 75% QoQ from Rs 43.26 crore net loss reported in Q4 FY24. Despite this, the company’s operating revenue saw a marginal decline of 0.8% QoQ, dropping to Rs 1,666.85 crore from Rs 1,666.85 crore in the preceding quarter.
This financial report is the startup’s first since its listing on the stock exchanges earlier this month.
In terms of total expenses, which exclude finance costs and depreciation & amortization expenses, the company witnessed a 12.6% increase to Rs 1,602.90 crore from Rs 1,422.61 crore in Q1 FY24. These expenses dropped 2% as compared to total expenses of Rs 1,633.73 crore in Q4 FY24.
The purchase of stock in trade accounted for the highest expense, reaching Rs 885.3 crore. Additionally, employee benefit expenses reached Rs 133.9 crore during the quarter under review, compared to Rs 114.03 crore in Q1 FY24 and Rs 138.01 crore in Q4 FY24.
FirstCry’s expenses on the Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP) were Rs 22.8 crore in Q1 FY25 against Rs 45.3 crore in Q1 FY24. The company has stated its expectation for ESOP charges based on the currently issued stocks to amount to Rs 82.52 crore for the current fiscal year.
The company recently received show notices from the Income Tax Department concerning ESOP expenses of Rs 79.7 crore for the assessment years (AY) 2018-19 to 2021-22.
Moreover, FirstCry reported a loss of Rs 12.26 crore (net of insurance claims) in Q1 FY25 due to fires destroying it’s inventories, properties and equipment at its warehouses in West Bengal’s Hooghly and Maharashtra’s Bhiwandi.
Additionally, FirstCry noted that severe rainfall in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on April 16 resulted in widespread flooding in Dubai and Sharjah, affecting the company’s operations. However, business operations returned to normal within approximately two weeks of the incident.
In terms of consolidated adjusted EBITDA for the quarter, the company experienced a remarkable 106% YoY growth, reaching Rs 74.3 crore. This figure was adjusted for share-based expenses and also included GlobalBees EBITDA, which was adjusted for salaries and wages as per Para B55 of Ind-AS 103 and deal-related costs.
Moreover, the gross merchandise value (GMV) for the quarter saw a 17% YoY increase to Rs 2,318.3 crore. The company also reported a 15% increase in the number of annual unique transacting customers, reaching 9.5 million, with over 9 million of these customers originating from India and the remainder from international markets.
The average order value (AOV) across India’s multichannel platforms experienced a slight decline of 3% to reach Rs 2,157 during the quarter, compared to the previous quarter’s AOV of Rs 2,181. The AOV in international markets witnessed a notable increase of 13%, rising to Rs 8,669 from Rs 7,644 in the first quarter of fiscal year 2024.
In terms of revenue, FirstCry’s operations in India generated a total of Rs 1,150.1 crore during the quarter under review, with international markets contributing an additional revenue of Rs 183.7 crore.
The ecommerce division of FirstCry’s subsidiary, GlobalBees, achieved an operating revenue of Rs 324.5 crore during the quarter, marking a 26% increase from Rs 256.5 crore in Q1 FY24 . GlobalBees specializes in aggregating and investing in ecommerce brands, assisting them in expanding and enhancing their digital presence.
In a strategic move, FirstCry’s board of directors authorized an investment of Rs 100 crore into its subsidiary in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, aiming to fortify its presence in these markets.
Following the announcement, FirstCry’s stock prices saw a 1.89% increase to close the Friday session at Rs 641.40 on the BSE.
