Filenews 15 November 2022
By Fotis Fotinos
The expansion of Apple's branch network in Greece and Cyprus continues by iStorm, which is a subsidiary of Quest.
There are nine iStorm stores operating in Greece, four of which are in Athens, two in Thessaloniki, one in Rhodes, one in Patras and one in Heraklion.
Similarly, there are three stores operating in Cyprus, one in the centre of Nicosia, one in the Limassol marina, one in the Metropolis Mall in Larnaca and on November 18th the Paphos store will be inaugurated in the Mall (a total of 13 in Greece and Cyprus, with the company considering adding more, reaching 20).
In the first half of 2022, iStorm achieved high growth rates, recording a 43% increase in sales and in fact, as the parent company, Quest, commented, almost all product categories showed double-digit growth.
Physical stores, as reported by Quest, were the key factor in the rise. Also, during the period under review, the new store in Larnaca, which was not operating in the corresponding period last year, contributed positively.
It is noted that at the end of October, Apple published the financial results of the financial year 2022 (ended on September 24), according to which the annual revenue amounted to $ 394.3 billion compared to $ 365.8 billion in the financial year 2021 and the profits to $ 99.8 billion compared to $ 94.7 billion in 2021.
Forecasts for the whole year
For the second half, Quest expects to continue the positive trajectory recorded in the first half, with a further increase at all levels.
"iStorm intends to continue investments, both in physical stores and in its online store, as well as in new services that it plans to launch in the coming months, which will further improve the customer experience," the company said.
At the same time, the investment in the installation and operation of the company's central CRM has begun and will continue to be implemented, which, he estimates, will help commercially and improve customer service and monitoring.
Furthermore, iStorm will continue to further improve its online store and call centre, as alternative channels for selling, contacting and supporting customers.
It is noted that iStorm's sales are part of Quest's "IT Products" segment, which includes Info Quest Technologies, Quest on Line (you.gr), iSquare, iStorm, Clima Quest and FoQus.
In the first half of 2022, total revenues stood at €322.3 million. (an increase of 15.8% compared to 2021), EBITDA stood at € 11.5 million. (higher by 7.9% compared to 10.7 million in 2021), while earnings before tax (EBT) amounted to 7.9 million. (lower by 4.1% compared to 8.2 million in 2021).
The shortfall in earnings before tax (EBT), as claimed by Quest, is mainly due to the extraordinary staff subsidy that took place in Q2 and the decline in Quest online's figures in the first 5 months due to the fact that last year the physical stores at the same time were closed.
For the 12-month period, the current estimate predicts revenue growth and earnings perhaps at the same level compared to 2021.
The increase in revenue is due, as Quest points out, to the increase in market share from Apple products (due to iphone 14, MacBook, etc.) and the growth of new product categories, such as air conditioners.
However, reservations remain about the impact of energy costs, as well as geopolitical developments on consumption and the economy.
Source:Capital.gr
