Wayfair shrinks net loss in Q4

Boston-based online home furnishings retailer Wayfair Inc. managed to shrink its net loss in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2015 while other financial results soared.



Wayfair reported net loss of $15.49 million, down from $72.55 million in the same quarter a year earlier. Growth in cost of goods sold, operating expenses and other costs did not match the rate of revenue growth. Net revenue increased 81% to $739.79 million, from $408.62 million.



Other areas where Wayfair saw strong quarterly growth included its Direct Retail business, which primarily consists of sales generated through Wayfair’s five proprietary brands. Direct Retail Revenue increased 98% to $685.6 million from $346.7 million, bolstered by 67% growth in Direct Retail customers to 5.4 million.



In addition, overall repeat business was strong. Repeat customers placed 54% of total orders in the fourth quarter of 2015, compared to 50% in fourth quarter 2014. In addition, repeat customers placed 1.7 million orders in fourth quarter 2015, an increase of 96% year over year.



“We continue to grow both our new customer base and our repeat business with an exceptional shopping experience that redefines what is possible in home retail,” said Niraj Shah, CEO, cofounder and cochairman of Wayfair. “We remain firmly focused on delighting our customers as we continue to innovate and raise the bar in terms of selection, service and design inspiration. We look forward to making great strides in 2016 as we continue to build the Wayfair brand in the United States and ramp up our investment in Europe and Canada.”



For the full fiscal year, Wayfair reduced net loss to $77.44 million from $150.17 million. Net revenue rose 70 % to $2.25 billion, from $1.32 billion.