Eve Sleep PLC (LON:EVE) reported a smaller loss for last year and said up until the middle of March it had seen “no noticeable impact on demand, our operations or our supply chain” from coronavirus.
The AIM-listed mattress and bed maker said there had been “some impact” in the past week on traffic and consumer demand and this is expected to endure while Britain is locked down to limit the spread of the virus.
Having already cut costs heavily last year, to conserve cash further amid the pandemic and “ensure the robustness of the business should it be required”, the group said it had great flexibility with its marketing spend, its largest cost, with no store estate and most staff “more than used to working from home”.
Further padding comes from a net cash position stood at £7.8mln as at 29 February.
Chief executive James Sturrock said: “We enter 2020 in good shape, with the benefits of the rebuild strategy becoming increasingly evident.
“We have award-winning products and an increasingly differentiated, premium brand position in sleep wellness compared to the more price-led, mattress focused peers, underpinned by upgraded operational capability and a significantly reduced cost base.”
He hailed improved financial and operational indicators in the second half of the year, with cash burn cut 55% over the year and cost savings leading to the last four months of the financial year reaching marketing contribution breakeven, or in other words, a profit after marketing expenditure but before payroll and overhead costs.
Results for the whole of 2019 showed revenue dropped to £23.9mln from £29.4mln and statutory losses fell to £12.1mln from £20,1mln, helped by marketing spending more than halving to £2.6mln.