E-commerce flowers for FTD in FY 2006
FTD Inc. grew total e-commerce sales by 14.9% in fiscal 2006 and 24.9% in the fourth quarter. The company, No. 48 in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide to Retail Web Sites , also has settled a deceptive advertising lawsuit it filed against Provide Commerce, now a part of Liberty Media Corp., No. 56 in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide to Retail Web Sites .
The settlement includes a compromise in which FTD has agreed to dismiss a separate trademark action brought against Provide Commerce. In return Provide Commerce has agreed to make certain modifications to future advertising. The parties also mutually agreed to abide by certain other guidelines in their advertising after Dec. 31, 2006.
For the 2006 fiscal year, FTD had web sales of $248 million vs. e-commerce sales of $216 million in FY 2005. For the year, e-commerce represented about 90% of FTD’s consumer segment revenue of $275 million vs. about 87% of $247.1 million in FY 2005. In the fourth quarter FTD posted web sales of $86.7 million, an increase of 24.9% from web sales of $69.4 million in the final quarter the previous year.
"We are pleased with our strong fourth quarter performance. Revenue grew while margins expanded, demonstrating our ability to efficiently scale our business in a competitive marketplace," contends president and CEO Michael J. Soenen. "As we enter fiscal 2007, we are committed to maintaining our strategy and, with the acquisition of Interflora, we believe that we can accelerate the company`s revenue and earnings growth while providing a platform for further expansion into other European countries."
FTD recently completed the acquisition of Interflora Holdings Limited, a U.K.-based provider of floral-related products and services that sells via the web and catalogs in the United Kingdom. FTD purchased the company for GBP 66 million, about $122 million U.S., excluding transaction costs.
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