Vancouver-based eyewear e-commerce company KITS Eyecare Ltd. has notched its first profitable quarter since it went public in January 2021.
KITS (TSX:KITS) recorded $20,000 in net income on $23,578,000 in revenue in the quarter that ended Sept. 30, the company said after markets closed today.
After accounting for the cost of goods, the company generated $7,213,000 in gross profit in that quarter. Other business expenses then get deducted to determine net income.
KITS’ positive net income was unexpected even though it has been reducing losses in recent quarters because the company has an ambitious strategy to increase sales, and it has been ramping up hiring.
KITS’ CEO Roger Hardy told BIV that his company has hired about 50 new people this year and that he plans to hire another 50 people in 2023.
A KITS filing earlier this year pinned the company's staff count at 95 at the end of 2021, including 23 people who worked in corporate offices. The rest work either at the company's optical lab, its fulfillment centre or its cafe and eyewear store on Cornwall Avenue and Yew Street.
KITS’ quarterly revenue increased 17.7 per cent year-over-year, while its gross profit increased 38.8 per cent.
The company said that its quarterly revenue from eyeglasses increased 81 per cent year-over-year, while its number of eyeglasses delivered was up 118 per cent to 61,000.
The company’s share price started 2022 at $2.90. It then fell by about one-third, to $1.97, in May, before rebounding. Its shares closed at $2.47 this afternoon, before its earnings release.
