Blackmores announced on 24 February that its revenue from sales to China in the first half of FY2021 totalled $77m, up 27 per cent from H1 FY2020.
The record returns bettered the ASX-listed company’s previous peak performance in FY2018, when it reported half-yearly revenue of $74m. H1 FY2021’s bullish result represented a substantial hike from the previous two financial years, in which Blackmores’ China sales dropped to around $60m as it transitioned from a daigou-based model to domestic trade.
The company’s FY2021 result reflected significant growth in its cross-border e-commerce (CBEC), and its number 3 ranking with respect to vitamin and dietary supplement sales on e-commerce giant Tmall over the period.
Blackmores also reported robust returns over H1 FY2021 from several South-East Asian nations, attributed principally to sales of immune-system-supporting supplements.
Indonesia, where sales skyrocketed 73 per cent compared with the same period in FY2019-20, was the standout, but revenue from Thailand and Malaysia also grew, up 13% and 10% respectively. In Vietnam, sales of infant formula fuelled continued strong performance.
Blackmores plans to launch in India later this year.
Meanwhile, sales in the supplements firm’s largest market, Australia and New Zealand, plummeted 10% to a five-year low of $166m in H1 FY2021 compared to the same period in FY2020. The company attributed the drop to changed shopper behaviour resulting from rolling lockdowns across Australia, and lower sales of its cold and flu supplements.
Going forward, Blackmores’ focus will nevertheless remain on the ANZ, China and South-East Asian markets.
Source: Blackmores’ half year results: Revenue hits five-year high in China, but slumps to five-year low at home I NutraIngredients Asia