HelloFresh has almost reached the threshold of one billion meals last year: the mealbox delivery company continues to grow solidly and posted record sales last year, despite the easing of the Covid measures.
Launched in Asia
HelloFresh once again recorded spectacular growth figures in 2021, after the German company had already broken all records in 2020. Sales increased by 60 % to 5.99 billion euros, delivering 964 million meals in seventeen countries. One year earlier, the company had delivered ‘just’ 601 million meal kits. Not only did the 7.2 million active customers (+ 37 %) order more than before the coronavirus pandemic, they also spent more per order on average.
That growth positively influenced the profit: the adjusted gross profit (EBITDA) increased by 4.4 % to 527.6 million euros – despite significant investments, such as the launch of the formula in Norway, Italy and even Japan. HelloFresh is now testing the potential on the Asian market. At the same time, there was an acquisition in Australia (Youfoodz) and the opening of new production facilities in various countries. As a result, the profit margin decreased slightly to 25 %.
Expanding the product offering
In the fourth quarter, HelloFresh posted record sales of 1.58 billion euros, representing an increase of 43 %. In some countries, more stringent Covid measures or lockdowns were in place, especially for the hospitality industry. Still, the company itself lists the expansion of the number of recipes and the additional product range (HelloFresh Market) as the reasons.
For 2022, the meal-kit delivery company nevertheless expects a slowdown caused by global economic uncertainty. The company plans to continue investing as usual, for instance, in the start-up of two new countries this year, additional technology and the launch of a new brand.
