Ace Company concludes 2021 with an increase in sales and a decrease in net profit. The company’s revenues amounted to NIS 715.5 million, an increase of 7% compared to 2020. The increase in sales is due to an increase in online shopping growth, an improvement in synergy between the sites and physical stores, an increase in logistics warehouses and an improvement in supply chain, despite the global maritime transport crisis. The company explains that it began preparing for the crisis in the first quarter of the year, and in order to alleviate future shortages in the country, “inventory balances are significantly higher compared to previous periods.”
The annual net profit reflected a decrease of about 6.7% to NIS 30.7 million. For the fourth quarter, net profit was NIS 5.1 million, a decrease of 53% compared to NIS 11 million in the fourth quarter of 2020. The decrease is justified by the company with one-time effects, in light of a NIS 1.5 million grant it received in the corresponding quarter in 2020. (NIS), and accelerated depreciation expenses due to the closure of five Ace Electric branches in the amount of NIS 1 million. In addition, annual expenses of NIS 1 million were added due to the company moving to operate as a public company this year.
The Ace chain, which operates in the “do-it-yourself” category, is spread over 32 stores across the country over an area of 53,000 square meters. The company employs about 990 people. According to its reports, the average number of visitors to the stores is about 800,000. Consumers every month, and the website – about 3.2 million surfers a month.On online sites, 350,000 transactions were made in 2021, compared to 315,000 transactions in 2020.
The chain lists the brands Ace, Auto Depot, Spetz and Ace Electric, and it has a customer club of over one million members.
The company reports that online revenue in 2021 amounted to about NIS 170 million, compared to about NIS 140 million in 2020, a growth of about 21.7%. Revenue rate from online activity of the Company’s total revenue in 2021 amounts to approximately 19.2%, compared with 17.2% in 2020 and 8.8% in 2019.
In February this year, the company entered into an agreement to acquire the activities of the retail chains Beitili, Urban and ID Design, as well as a furniture factory that serves the chains’ operations. Completion of the transaction is subject to the fulfillment of conditions precedent set forth in the agreement, including obtaining approval from the competition commissioner. According to the agreement, the company will pay a total of NIS 100 million, while on the date of completion a total of NIS 90 million will be paid, and the balance in the amount of NIS 10 million will be paid 12 months after the date of completion.
Itzik Ozana, CEO Multi Retail Group Said: “Like last year, 2021 was also a year saturated with challenges, such as delays in the supply chain and sea freight prices that skyrocketed during the year and broke records around the world, with the corona still in the background. To minimize the increase in costs associated with purchasing goods as much as possible, we expanded the synergy between online shoppers and physical stores, we made the first synergistic purchase, of the Beitili Group which will be an important source of growth in the coming years. The company in the coming years ahead. “