Cettire shares slide as chair acknowledges 'distractions'
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The news: Cettire shares slumped ahead of the luxury e-commerce platform's annual general meeting today, as chair Bob East acknowledged "numerous distractions" over the last six months.
The numbers: Cettire shares were down 6.5% to $1.52 by 2pm AEDT, having shed nearly 50% since January.
The context: In prepared remarks ahead of today's annual general meeting, East addressed the company's "share price volatility" and "numerous distractions" over the last six months.
"In addressing some of the concerns raised in the second half of the financial year, the board and management felt it was important to conduct internal reviews and expand the FY24 audit to include in-depth assessments on the various public claims regarding Cettire's practices and processes," East said.
The luxury goods platform has for months faced serious questions over its business model, supply chain and tax dealings, and become one of the market's most heavily short sold name.
Meanwhile, Cettire founder and CEO Dean Mintz said that the company has been "navigating through a more challenging external environment in the luxury market".
Mintz noted that softening demand has persisted into the current season, but the company has observed changes in wholesale buying patterns which should improve the pricing environment "in the coming months".
The Cettire boss also said the company is exploring new marketing channels and working on opportunities to build loyalty from existing customers.
What they said: "We have adjusted our marketing spend downwards accordingly as we have sought to increase emphasis on profit in the current year," Mintz said.
"We have also increased focus on driving sales from our existing customer base."
The source: ASX announcement
