The Knot reports web sales were up 28% in Q4

Web-only wedding merchandise retailer The Knot Inc. saw full year and fourth quarter sales inch ahead in 2009.

For the year ended Dec. 31, 2009, The Knot reports:

• Total revenue of $106.4 million, up by 2.4% from $103.9 million a year earlier.
• Revenue from the sale of wedding supplies, the retailer`s web sales, was $24.6 million up 20% compared with $20.5 million a year earlier.
• Publishing and other revenue fell 14% to $16 million compared to $18.6 million.
• Registry services revenue grew to $21.6 million, up 10.8% from $19.5 million a year earlier.
• Online advertising and sponsorship revenue was $55.7 million compared to $54.3 million a year earlier.
• Net loss was $4.8 million compared with a profit of $4.1 million a year earlier.

The Knot is No. 345 in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide.

For the fourth quarter, The Knot reports:

• Total revenue was $25.1 million, up 3% from $24.4 million in the year-ago quarter.
• Revenue from wedding supplies, the retailer`s web sales, grew 28% to $3.93 million compared with $3.06 million a year earlier. The rise in supplies sales mainly stemmed from its acquisition of Felicite.com Inc., developer of wish list technology and operator of eWish.com, a stand-alone gift registry service, in the second quarter of 2009, the company says.
• Publishing and other revenue declined 14% to $4.68 million from $5.45 million a year earlier.
• Registry services revenue increased 1% to $1.88 million compared with $1.86 million a year earlier.
• Online advertising and sponsorship revenue was $14.57 million up 4% from $14.06 million a year earlier
• Net loss for the quarter was $6.05 million compared to a loss of $981,000 a year earlier. The Knot says the loss is a result of impairment charges from its acquisition of TheWeddingChannel.com as well as less interest income because of the low interest rate environment.

The Knot Wedding Network enrolled 1.9 million new members in 2009, on par with 2008 levels, the Knot says. The company also published 275 niche wedding-planning web sites last year. The sites target local wedding destinations with locale-specific information, local bloggers, message boards and listings for local wedding vendors. The sites have contributed as much as 34% more visits per month to local media on TheKnot.com, the company says.

The Knot recently rolled out variable pricing in all local markets in the U.S. and Canada, enabling local advertisers in over 35 categories to purchase online advertising by market. The company also launched a local self-service platform enabling local advertisers to sign up for and create online profiles for their businesses through an online portal.

The Knot also doubled the frequency of its ad-based The Knot weddings magazine, to four times per year.

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