TOPBI International Holdings Ltd (淘帝國際控股), a leading children’s clothing brand in China, on Wednesday reported a positive outlook for the second quarter, as it is peak season for children’s apparel.
The company, which trades its shares on the Taiwan Stock Exchange, said that it plans to hold more promotional activities, release new designs for Chinese Children’s Day on June 1 and attend Hikid Fashion Week later this year.
TOPBI also plans to launch a new “mini topbi” brand for one to three-year-olds later this year through e-commerce platforms, a move that aims to achieve product differentiation and raise selling prices, it said.
“Since TOPBI accounts for only 1 percent of [the children’s clothing] market in China and there are no dominant players in the market, we believe there is room for expansion,” a TOPBI public relations official told the Taipei Times.
The official asked to remain anonymous.
The company has opened more than 100 outlets in China in the past two years and has nearly 1,700 stores in total.
Physical stores accounted for more than 90 percent of last quarter’s total revenue of NT$1.34 billion, while e-commerce contributed 7 percent, up from 4 percent a year earlier, the company said.
Most parents still prefer shopping at physical stores, but a rising number of young parents are shopping online, the company said.
The children’s clothing market in China is forecast to grow to NT$802.4 billion (US$25.96 billion) this year, TOPBI said.
As average consumption of infant products has been increasing over the past few years, the company would also keep expanding its online-to-offline channels, it said.
Net profit last quarter climbed 4.3 percent to NT$224.6 million, a record for the period, TOPBI said.
Earnings per share rose 4.18 percent to NT$2.74, compared with NT$2.63 a year earlier, while gross margin improved from 38.71 percent to 40 percent, it added.
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