Eve eyeing profitability as mattress sales surge

Online mattress retailer Eve Sleep has shrugged off widening losses amid a 132 per cent surge in sales as its chief executive confirmed plans to post a profit by the end of 2019.

The company saw its statutory pre-tax loss grow from £11.3 million in 2016 to £19m over the year to 31 December, knocked by heavy investments in marketing and £2.1m in one-off costs associated with its initial public offering (IPO) last May.

But sales more than doubled to £27.7m over the period from £12m a year earlier, with revenue growth in the UK and Ireland rising 109 per cent to £16.1m and international sales up 174 per cent.

The firm said it “achieved what it set out to do in 2017” by focusing on rapid sales growth and “increasing cost efficiency”, while continuing to expand its product offerings beyond mattresses, including pillows, sheets and duvets, which now account for 13 per cent of sales.

Boss Jas Bagniewski confirmed the group was still on track to swing to a profit within the next two years.