Lastminute.com has reported losses of GBP35.7 million for the fiscal year 2000.
UK-based eTailer Lastminute.com today reported losses of GBP35.7 million. While this may sound like bad news, many of the accompanying figures are in its favor. The company’s website has three million registered users (showing 37% growth since June 2000), and the total transactional value of products and services is over GBP13 million as of September 2000, up from GBP9.5 million in June 2000. Unlike many cash-poor dotcoms, Lastminute still has GBP103 million of cash reserves. It also hasn’t had to curtail its expansion plans, as it is planning to launch sites in Italy, Spain and Netherlands this week.
There are still problems. Only 156,000 of its subscribers are actually customers, for instance. But Lastminute still looks likely to reach profitability.
The process of integrating French web travel business Degriftour, acquired this year for GBP51.5 million, is going well. Degriftour has a similar business model to Lastminute, with 90% of its sales for last-minute fares, and has 50% of the French market. The deal should establish Lastminute firmly in the French market, also giving it the necessary scale throughout Europe to compete against the new airline-backed travel portals and traditional tour operator groups.
Lastminute should also benefit from offering a wide base of technology platforms to access the site. It is set to introduce a unique telesales channel using voice-recognition technology that which provides telephone access without the expense of call centers. It has also strengthened its mCommerce partnerships through deals with the UK’s One2One and France’s Bouygues Telecom in recent months, as well as dealing with iTV providers NTL and Telewest.
This cross-platform strategy, combined with investment in technical solutions (e.g. personalization and quicker product searches) to increase customer conversion rates, should leave Lastminute well-placed to take full advantage of whichever emerging technology becomes dominant.
Behind this technological strength lies a management team with online experience led by CEO Allan Leighton, who has who has substantial real world retail knowledge. This leadership should be able to ensure that Lastminute’s strengths are converted into profit growth.
