Playboy’s 2009 e-commerce sales fall nearly 23%

Playboy Enterprises continues its revenue decline, but a restructuring has helped cut costs.

For the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, 2009, Playboy reported:

• E-commerce sales were $37.4 million, a 22.7% decline from $48.4 million in 2008.
• Total sales were $240.4 million, down by 17.7% from $292.1 million.
• The web accounted for 15.6% of sales, compared with 16.6% in 2008.
• Net loss was $51.3 million, versus $160.4 million in 2008.

A continuing sales decline has led Playboy Enterprises, No. 203 in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide, to implement cost-cutting moves including outsourcing the non-editorial operations of its magazine in November and a deal last week outsourcing its Asian product licensing business to IMG Licensing Worldwide.

“These partnerships illustrate our strategic direction and represent the first steps in our repositioning,” says Scott Flanders, Playboy Enterprises CEO. “In executing this strategy, our goal is to create a leaner organization and to remove cost centers and overhead.”

For the fourth quarter, Playboy reported:

• Online sales were $9.6 million, a 10.3% decrease compared with $10.7 million in Q4 2008.
• Total sales were $60.6 million, down by 13.2% from $69.8 million.
• The web represented 15.8% of total sales, versus 15.3% in Q4 2008.
• Net loss was $27.8 million, compared with $146.8 million in 2008.

Playboy sells merchandise online at e-commerce sites ShoptheBunny.com and PlayboyStore.com.