Allbirds 2022 sales lift as losses widen, new CFO announced

By

Benjamin Fitzgerald

Published
Mar 11, 2023

Sustainable footwear and apparel brand Allbirds Inc. announced on Thursday revenue uptick of 7% to $297.8 million for the year 2022, despite a 13% decrease in fourth-quarter sales to $84.2 million.

The San Francisco-based company said quarterly revenues were hit a decrease in the number of orders, and an estimated $3.2 million negative impact from foreign exchange. As a result, ​quarterly net loss was $24.9 million compared to $10.4 million in the fourth quarter of 2021.

Full-year 2022 sales in the U.S. increased 9.5% to $229.8 million, with retail store sales the primary driver. International net revenue was roughly flat compared to 2021 at $68 million, as the business was negatively impacted by external headwinds, including continuing Covid-19 restrictions in China, a decrease in discretionary consumer spending as a result of increasing inflation, the impact of the crisis in Ukraine in Europe, and unfavorable foreign exchange rates.

Net loss for the year ending December 31 was $101.4 million, compared to $45.4 million in 2021.
 
“2022 marked the end of our first full year as a public company and while we made important progress, the year came to a challenging close, with results below our expectations due to both execution and macro challenges. We need to improve performance, and are announcing a new transformation plan to reinvigorate the business with an emphasis on profitable growth,” said Joey Zwillinger, Co-Founder and Co-CEO.

“Our focus is on four key areas to help Allbirds reconnect with our core consumers and meet new customers in a more capital efficient and profitable way.”

Coinciding with the earnings update, Allbirds announced the appointment of Annie Mitchell to the role of chief financial officer, effective April 24. Mitchell will succeed Mike Bufano, who will be stepping down from Allbirds and will remain with the company through mid-May to ensure a smooth transition.

An experienced finance executive in the retail industry, Mitchell joins Allbirds from Gymshark, where she is wrapping up her role as vice president of finance and insights.

Prior to that, she spent 10 years at Adidas where she held various positions within the finance organization, including most recently as senior vice president of finance (CFO) of Adidas North America. Prior to Adidas, Mitchell spent a decade in finance and planning functions of other consumer and retail businesses.