Chewy reports strong growth after adding over 400,000 customers in 2024

Chewy posted net sales of $3.3 billion (€3B) for the fourth quarter (Q4) of its 2024 financial year ending 2 February 2025. This is a 14.9% increase year-on-year (YoY). Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) was $124.5 million (€115.8M), a 49% YoY increase.

For the full financial year, the company posted net sales of $11.9 billion (€11B), a 6.4% increase compared to 2023. Growth is stabilizing – in 2023, Chewy saw 10.2% sales growth, 2022 resulted in a 12.8% sales growth rate and 2021 saw 25.5% sales growth. Adjusted EBITDA was $570.5 million (€530.47M) for the year, a 55% increase YoY.

“The durability and power of our highly predictable business model shined and led to another year of market share gains,” CEO Sumit Singh says.

“We innovated at pace, made smart investment decisions and maintained operating discipline throughout the year, allowing us to deliver both results that exceeded expectations and compelling returns to our shareholders.”

Customer growth

The net change in active shoppers was positive, with the company adding 431,000 active customers. Customer growth increased, especially in Q4 – numbers had been stagnating for much of the financial year. Singh says the sudden growth was likely due to a 15% higher marketing spend during the quarter.

The company’s strategy of relying on automatic goods shipments appears to be working. Autoship accounted for 80.6% of sales in Q4. Net sales per active customer (NSPAC) increased slightly to $578 (€537), up from $555 (€516) in 2023.

Hard goods outpaced consumables

Reversing an industry-wide trend, hard goods growth outpaced growth in consumables. Specifically, CFO David Reeder says that leashes, collars, tech, beds and toy sales were up YoY.

Singh states that one major factor was the number of new customers signing up with Chewy. Newer customers are more likely to shop for hard goods on the site, and longtime customers are more likely to contribute to earnings through regular food and other consumables shipments. This suggests that future growth in hard goods will depend on customer growth.

With the wind largely at Chewy’s back, executives project a net sales growth rate of 6% and 7% YoY growth in 2025. This would result in net sales of $12.3 billion (€11.4B) to $12.5 billion (€11.6B).