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Lastminute.com Performing ‘Ahead Of Plan’ Despite Losses of �35.7m

Lastminute.com Performing ‘Ahead Of Plan’ Despite Losses of �35.7m

Shares in online retailer Lastminute.com rose this morning after the company released its preliminary results to September. They showed that, despite heavy net losses, it is ahead of target to reach profitability – partly due to the completion of its takeover of French online retailer Degriftour, completed last month.

Lastminute.com, which raised £113.5m through its flotation in March, expects to attain profitablity by 2002. However, analysts are concerned that it cannot compete against giants such as Expedia and Travelocity as well as airlines own websites. Figures for the past year showed net losses of £35.7m compared to £4.5m for 1999 although gross profit rose almost 19-fold on 1999 to £3.3m

Said Lastminute.com chief executive Brent Hoberman: “These results show the considerable progress we have made over the past year in building the lastminute marketplace on the internet”. He also claimed that the company had “focused on exactly the strategy we set out at flotation – deepening and widening content; building our customer and revenue base; widening our footprint; deploying new technology; strengthening management; moving towards increasingly personalised service on a mass basis; and reinforcing our brand and marketing strength.”

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