Pent up demand for luxury high heels and dresses, particularly in the US market, helped to accelerate Mytheresa’s sales in the first three months of 2021, up 47.5 percent year-over-year to €164.8 million (about $201 million).

The German e-tailer emphasised its profitability in a call with analysts on Tuesday, reporting adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) for the quarter of about €11 million (about $13.6 million).

Mytheresa’s chief executive officer Michael Kliger is bullish that demand for luxury shopping online will continue even as stores reopen and customers feel more comfortable shopping in person, and emphasised the value of the retailer’s curated assortment and stable, profitable business model. The company raised its guidance for the fiscal year ending June 2021, expecting total net sales of between €600 and 605 million, a 33 to 35 percent growth year-over-year with an adjusted EBITDA margin of 9.1 to 9.8 percent.

Customer acquisition costs decreased 3 percent year-over-year for the quarter. Kliger said the company plans to invest further in its US business to capitalise on the growth there, and said the country has delivered the most dramatic shift to digital shopping of all of the retailer’s regions. Net sales grew by 76 percent in the US during the quarter, compared the same period last year, which was mostly unaffected by the pandemic. The retailer recently hired Heather Kaminetsky as president of North America, and she begins her role in June with a focus on increasing brand awareness and onboarding more personal shoppers to support Mytheresa’s top-tier clients.

“We are seeing a strongly increased spend from our top customers as they begin to resume pre-pandemic activities such as social events and vacation,” said Kliger. Sales from top customer grew 10 percent in the quarter versus the same period last year.

Last quarter, Kliger said the retailer was in conversations with brands about potentially shifting partnerships as drop-ship and other types of arrangements become more popular for luxury brands trying to control their e-commerce assortment. Kliger told BoF those conversations are ongoing but nothing has shifted so far with Mytheresa’s brands. In the third quarter, the retailer offered exclusive collections from Burberry, Bottega Veneta, Simone Rocha, onboarded Dior eyewear and orchestrated a collaboration between Marine Serre and Jimmy Choo.

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