Kogan expands to USA to push house brands

Kogan revealed it has established a US-based subsidiary to supply its "Exclusive Brands" - a range of consumer products sold under brands cooked up by Kogan - to US retailers

The online retailer did not go into specifics, but said the first orders from ‘large’ retailers have been received.

A Kogan spokesperson told CRN its decision to expand to the US was due to the larger market size and opportunity for the company.

"We have a great deal of experience in our Exclusive Brands division and if you line up our offering side by side with any offering from any major retailer around the world, it’s very competitive," the spokesperson said.

"We have relationships and expertise in contract manufacturing that have been developed over more than 10 years. We also are acutely aware of changing consumer trends, and hot new product opportunities."

Kogan’s Exclusive Brands range is composed of 11 in-house brands, including Kogan branded consumer tech and whitegoods and appliances; Ovela house goods furniture, Komodo camping gear; Certa power tools Orbis luggage, Fortis sports equipment, Pestill pest control tech, Bella Vita health tech; Estelle beauty products, Bubbli baby products; and Pawever Pets pet gear.

In an Update released today ahead of its full FY2019 results, Kogan revealed that the Exclusive Brands range saw 30 percent year-over-year revenue growth in the second half of FY2019

Kogan also revealed that it saw a jump in “active customers” over the past year, or customers that have made a purchase on Kogan.com within the period.

Kogan.com had 1.6 million active customers as of 30 June 2019, up 15.9 percent from 1.4 million year-over-year. Kogan Mobile had 24.4 percent more active customers, while the recently-launched Kogan Internet saw 273 percent growth.

Kogan Marketplace, which launched in April, saw its gross transaction values — the total sales volume transacted through the platform — grow from $3 million in April to $5 million in June.

The company also expanded its logistics footprint to 13 fulfilment centres to facilitate its 2018 expansion into the whitegoods and built-in kitchen appliances market.

Looking ahead to the full results, Kogan revealed gross profit is up 12 percent, gross transaction value is up 9 percent, operating costs have been reduced by 2 percent and EBITDA growth is up by more than 25 percent.

In a canned statement in the Update, chief executive Ruslan Kogan said, “In contrast to what has been reported as a tough retail environment, we have been able to grow the business and earnings while investing significantly in the Kogan.com customer experience and enabling our long-term strategy.”

Kogan added the launch of Kogan Marketplace “is proving to be a transformational step” for the business, and the company has been “overwhelmed by the response” from sellers and customers.