It was the quarter to be in retail as Boxing Day and Christmas sales ushered in significant sales and the eradication of Covid lockdowns enabling Aussies to return to in-store shopping. 

Putting Covid on the back burner, 2023 looks pretty for retail businesses eagerly awaiting this return. Plus, with household budgets squeezed due to rising inflation, value-adding retail companies, like household and consumer appliances company JB Hi-Fi (ASX: JBH), are becoming the preferred option for shoppers. 

In the first half of FY23, between October and December, the Company recorded a sales growth of 8.6% on HY22 to $5.3 billion. This was driven mainly by continued customer demand and well-executed Black Friday and Boxing Day promotions. Online sales amounted to $752.1 million, representing just 14.2% of total sales. JB Hi-Fi was not the only one to profit off the festive season as its competitor Super Retail Group posted revenue of $1.9 billion for the quarter. 

Commenting on the results, JB Hi-Fi Group CEO, Terry Smart, said, “We are pleased to report record sales and earnings for HY23 as trading conditions started to normalise following two years of Covid-related disruptions. 

“Our relentless focus on providing the best value and high levels of customer service every day, both in-store and online, continues to resonate with our customers.”

Within the group, JB Hi-Fi Australia recorded the most sales of $3.6 billion, with The Good Guys—a home appliances company that JB Hi-Fi acquired in 2016—coming in second at $1.5 billion. The Company’s New Zealand arm saw the greatest sales growth of 16.6% to $160 million.

On earnings, JB Hi-Fi Australia came in at the top, recording a 16.7% growth to $341.3 million. The Good Guys, too, performed well, with earnings increasing from $121.1 million in HY22 to $133 million in HY23. However, the Group’s total came down due to New Zealand’s performance, which recorded a 26.5% fall in EBIT on HY22 to $5.4 million. 

Overall, the Company witnessed a profit boost of 14.6% to $330 million, with EBIT rising 14% from $420.5 million in HY22 to $479.2 million in HY23.

Even throughout Covid, the Company performed relatively well thanks to their quick transition to online channels when stores were closed during the peak of pandemic lockdowns.

In FY22, it recorded sales growth of 3.5% to $9.23 billion, up from $8.92 billion in FY21. The positive and profitable ripples were felt across the retail space in Australia. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, retail turnover in the country has been witnessing an upward trend with November 2022 recording a 7.7% growth on November 2021. Household goods retailing, specifically, rose to $130.9 million in the month.

Smart added, “As always, a key part of our continued success is our over 13,000 team members and their passion and dedication to looking after our customers’ needs. I would again like to thank them for delivering this outstanding result.”

With the consumer electronics market in Australia set to grow to $10 billion in 2023, the Company can expect a profitable overall FY23 if all goes to plan. 

The Group will release its half-year audited statutory results on February 13, 2023.