Backcountry, Bodybuilder Grew Sales and Margins in 2014

Online retailers Backcountry and Bodybuilding grew sales and operating income in 2014, according to financial results released by Liberty Interactive Corp.

Liberty Interactive does not typically break out financial results for the companies, but said they accounted for 80 percent of the sales growth and nearly 69 percent of the growth in operating income before depreciation and amortization at its Digital Commerce group during the year ended Dec. 31, 2014.

Group revenue increased 7 percent to $306 million in the quarter and 9 percent to $1.0 billion for the year. Backcountry.com accounted for $37 million, or 41.6 percent of the incremental revenue, while Bodybuilding.com accounted for $34 million, or 38.2 percent. Group results also reflect results from Evite, The Right Start and CommerceHub, where revenue grew by $5 million for the year.

At Backcountry, which sells outdoor and cycling gear, revenue increased as a result of increases in order volume and average order value. At Bodybuilding.com, which is a major online outlet of nutritional supplements and other fitness products, the growth was due primarily to increased order volume on flat average order values. 

Adjusted OIBDA for the continuing Digital Commerce companies increased 17 percent to $41 million in the quarter and 22 percent to $90 million for the year. Backcountry accounted for $9 million, or 56.3 percent of the annual growth, while  Bodybuilding generated $2 million, or 12.5 percent of the growth. CommerceHub contributed another $8 million in incremental OIBDA.

Adjusted OIBDA represented 8.8 percent of revenue in 2014, up 100 basis points from 2013. Most of our subsidiaries experienced flat to slightly increased Adjusted OIBDA margins for the year,  large because improved product margins and cost containment efforts more than offset higher marketing and promotional spending and lower advertising revenue due to lower rates and a shift to mobile applications.

Operating income for the continuing Digital Commerce companies increased 286 percent to $13 million in the quarter and decreased 30 percent to $7 million for the year.