Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Shaver Shop's Results Presentation and Investor Conference Call for the first half of the 2026 financial year. Please note that today's call is being recorded. There'll be a presentation followed by a question- and- answer session. Presenting today will be Cameron Fox, Shaver Shop's CEO and Managing Director, and Larry Hamson, Shaver Shop's CFO and Company Secretary. If you wish to follow along with the Slides, Shaver Shop's presentation has been logged with the ASX and is also available from Shaver Shop's Investor Centre website. I will now hand the call over to Cameron Fox. Please go ahead.
Good morning, everyone, thank you for joining us today. Larry and I are pleased to present Shaver Shop's results for the first half of FY26. As you'll see, this was a solid half, delivered in a retail environment that remains highly competitive and value-driven, but one where our strategy and execution continue to deliver high-quality outcomes. I'll begin with a brief strategic overview and then walk through the key highlights from the half. Larry will then take you through the financials in more detail before I return to provide a trading update and outline our priorities for the remainder of FY26. We'll start with a snapshot of the business on Slide 4. Shaver Shop remains one of the leading specialty retailers in personal care and grooming across Australia and NZ, with 126 corporate-owned stores and a well-established omni-channel platform.
We operate a highly differentiated business model built around exceptional customer service, deep product knowledge, and broad specialist ranges, many of which are exclusive to Shaver Shop. Brand awareness in Australia remains high, at around 87%, and we continue to hold leadership positions across numerous personal care and grooming categories. Financially, the business remains in a strong position with no debt, solid cash flow conversion, and a consistent track record of paying fully franked dividends. Just as importantly, we have a highly experienced management team with an average executive tenure of over 12 years, which has been critical in navigating the current operating environment. Moving on to Slide 5. Our underlying business fundamentals remain strong. We operate in an attractive and growing market, particularly in men's grooming, supported by long-term behavioral trends towards DIY grooming and personal care.
Our store network is well-established and consistently profitable, our omni-channel capability continues to evolve. Overlaying these fundamentals, our three key growth strategies, strategic category management, including exclusives, private brand initiatives, and securing exclusive distribution to innovative global brands wanting to enter the Australia and New Zealand market. Range expansion and category create opportunities into adjacencies, with a particular focus on expanding our range of consumable products to increase purchase frequency. Lastly, store network optimization through refits, relocations, and selected new stores. These initiatives continue to deliver broadly in line with expectations. Turning to our FY26 priorities. During the first half, we continued to build momentum behind Transform-U, our first private brand, expanded our range through new brands and categories, and progressed store network optimization initiatives.
We also acknowledge that while we've added several strong exclusive brands, there remains further opportunity to fully unlock their potential through increased brand support and range development. Moving on to the highlights on Slide 8. Total sales for the half were AUD 128.6 million, up 2.2% on the prior corresponding period, representing the second highest first half sales results in the group's history. Online sales grew 7.6% and now represent 24.6% of total sales, while in-store sales were also modestly higher year on year. The standout result was once again gross margin performance. We delivered a record gross margin of 46.5%, up 100 basis points, driven primarily by the continued success of Transform-U, and I'll speak about Transform-U more later in the presentation.
Our net profit after tax increased 1.5% to AUD 12.2 million. Operating cash flow was strong at AUD 36.9 million, net cash as of 31st December stood at AUD 25.1 million, noting this is a seasonal high for the business. The board declared a fully franked interim dividend of AUD 0.048 per share, reflecting confidence in the business and our balance sheet. Customer metrics remained exceptional, with a Net Promoter Score of 88.9, reinforcing the strength of our service-led model. On Slide 13, we provide more detail around our sales performance, importantly, we delivered two quarters of sales growth in the half, the first time this has occurred since FY23. In addition, both the online and in-store sales channels posted strong results.
Transactional volumes increased 3.8%, supported by improved conversion, although average transaction value declined modestly as consumers remain highly value conscious and promotional activity remain elevated around key events such as Black Friday and Boxing Day. Like-for-like, sales were up 0.9%, which we view as a solid outcome given broader retail conditions. Our sales conversion metrics in-store were also exceptional across the first half. Now, turning to category performance. As highlighted in the previous investor presentations, Shaver Shop prides itself on having deep and broad brand representation in our core categories. This is accentuated by a highly proportion of exclusive products, something we take great pride and care of in curating with our suppliers. Pleasingly, 21 of our top 30 selling products in dollar value were exclusive to Shaver Shop in the first half.
A number of these products were either from Transform-U or from exclusive distribution agreements like we have for Skull Shaver. We also extended our brand offering with Mangroomer and Pixer. All these initiatives are designed to provide customers with a unique offering and shopping experience that can only be experienced at Shaver Shop. Sales contribution by category remained relatively stable compared to first half FY25. We did see growth in lower margin categories such as power oral care, hair styling, and female categories. The same time, we remain focused on retaining and growing our share in our core men's grooming categories through compelling value for money propositions and exclusive ranges. Slide 11 highlights the continued strength of our margin performance.
Our gross profit increased 4.6% to AUD 59.8 million, a new first half record for the business, while gross margin expanded to a record 46.5%. This was achieved despite stronger relative growth in lower margin categories and reflects the incremental contribution from Transform-U, as well as a disciplined strategic category management philosophy. We're now cycling the initial launch of Transform-U, we continue to expect it to support strong gross profit outcomes over the medium term as the range expands and brand awareness also builds. Operationally, execution remained very strong, as you can see from Slide 12. In-store sales conversion increased to 47.8%, transactional volumes were up, and units per transaction increased to 1.43. Average transaction value in-store moderated, as I mentioned on the previous charts.
Online traffic and transactional volumes also increased and were supported by higher transactional values, in particular, due to category mix. These metrics reinforce a consistent message: where we control the levers, execution remains excellent. Let's now talk about Transform-U in a bit more detail on Slide 13. In short, the brand continues to exceed expectations. Since launching in October 2024, the range has grown to more than 100 SKUs, with over 300,000 units sold to date. As a % of total sales, Transform-U delivered a mid to high single-digit % in the first half of FY26, remembering the share in first half FY25 was in single low digits. TU was the largest driver of gross margin expansion.
Customer feedback on TU products remains best-in-class, with average customer ratings of approximately 4.8 out of a maximum of 5.0, and return rates below the company average. In the second half, our focus will be on building brand awareness with increased frequency of social media activity, launching a dedicated Transform-U website, and selectively expanding the range while maintaining quality and value. I'll now hand over to Larry to take you through the financial results in a tad more detail.
Thanks, Cameron. As Cameron mentioned, sales increased 2.2% to AUD 128.6 million, with growth across both in-store and the online channels. Like-for-like sales were up 0.9%. Gross profit increased 4.6%, reflecting the sales growth and margin expansion Cameron's already covered. Cost of doing business increased 5.5%, largely driven by wage inflation, including the minimum wage and superannuation guarantee increases, as well as the absence of the same level of prior year long-term incentive and expense reversals. Earnings before interest and tax increased 2.5% to AUD 18.1 million, with EBIT margin flat at 14.1%.
With net interest expense increasing slightly, this led to NPAT, or a net profit after tax, of AUD 12.2 million, up 1.5%, and delivering an NPAT margin of 9.5%. Basic and diluted EPS was AUD 0.093 per share and marginally higher than last year. Turning to the balance sheet, which remains very healthy. Net cash at December 31 was AUD 25.1 million, with no debt, and AUD 30 million of undrawn debt facilities. Inventory increased by AUD 3.4 million compared to the prior corresponding period, reflecting improved stock availability, increased Transform-U inventory, new exclusive brands, as well as an additional store. We continue to hold no material concerns about the level or the quality of the inventory we hold.
Net assets increased to AUD 94.3 million. The balance sheet remains, as I said before, in a very strong position. Moving on to our cash flow statement on Slide 17. Operating cash flow was AUD 36.9 million, up AUD 8.9 million on the prior corresponding period. After adjusting for a deferred supplier payment, which moved into early January 2026, normalized operating cash flow was still up approximately AUD 4 million to AUD 32 million. CapEx was modest at AUD 1.2 million, reflecting new stores, refits, and relocations. We expect CapEx to increase somewhat in the second half, as we have more store refits and relocations planned in this half.
Overall, net cash flow generation for the half was AUD 21.2 million, reflecting the seasonally stronger nature of the business in the first half, as well as the normalization of the supplier payment that I mentioned earlier. On to dividends and capital management. The board has once again declared a fully franked interim dividend of AUD 0.048 per share, 100% franked, consistent with the prior year. Our approach to dividends and capital management remains unchanged, which is to balance paying a healthy, sustainable dividend while continuing to invest in value accretive opportunities such as Transform-U and exclusive distribution brands. With that, I'll now hand you back to Cameron to briefly discuss our trading results in the first half or second half so far.
Thank you, Larry. We've had a pleasing start to the second half. Sales are up 3.8% so far, with like-for-like sales being up 1.9% through to 22nd of February. While both in-store and online channels have continued to grow, online has been the stronger performer, relatively speaking. Shoppers remain focused on finding outstanding value for money. That said, we have proven over time that our ongoing success is tied to what we control. Outstanding customer service, a differentiated range with a high proportion of exclusive products and compelling value for money offers. So far in the second half, gross margins are flat compared to the corresponding period, now that we are cycling the period after Transform-U was launched.
Like we saw in the first half, we are seeing higher proportion of sales growth coming from some of our lower margin categories. Looking forward, we will continue expanding the Transform-U range, and we are well progressed with plans to launch a dedicated website by the end of March. From there, we'll be building the brand with increased marketing activity, support, and investment. As a result, we expect Transform-U to deliver both sales growth and margin enhancement over time. Lastly, a new store at Eastern Creek Quarter in New South Wales is scheduled to open in March, and we have several refits and relocations planned for the second half. To conclude, Shaver Shop remains a highly differentiated specialty retailer, delivering resilient earnings, record margins, and strong cash generation in a reasonably unsettled retail environment.
Our strategy is working, execution remains strong, and we continue to invest carefully to support long-term value creation while returning capital to our shareholders. I thank you for your time today. We're now happy to take questions.
Thank you. We will now be conducting a question- and- answer session. If you wish to ask a question, please press star one on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. If you wish to cancel your request, please press star two. If you're on a speakerphone, please pick up your handset to ask your question. Our first question is from Andrew Johnston with MST Access. Please proceed.
Oh, good morning, Cameron. Morning, Larry.
Thank you.
Another great result, guys, and particularly around that gross margin that continues to move up with Transform-U. You know, looking back to the investment you made in Transform-U, it looks like it's really starting to contribute and perform well. Just on. If I can just to focus on that for a minute, we saw some pretty impressive contributions up from low single digit to high single digit. Correct me if I'm wrong on those numbers. You know, you're putting in additional investment into its own website, et cetera.
We look over the next couple of, say, next 12 months, maybe 2 years, do you expect to see most of the further uplift in Transform-U coming from your existing product range and just selling more of that through better marketing? Or do you expect to be rolling out additional products, additional Transform-U products?
I think we've certainly got some new products already in the pipeline for Transform-U. We expect an element of incremental SKUs. The key thing I think, Andrew, we've always stressed is it's really based on filling gaps in the categories. If we see an opportunity within a category which an existing supplier isn't capitalizing on and the customer wants it, that's a real big opportunity for Transform-U. In terms of the, I guess, the opportunity for Transform-U, there's two things too. Obviously, yes, it's obviously taking single mid to high digits of our total revenue at the moment. The key with the marketing support, Andrew, is also to build brand awareness, hopefully, that also stimulates category growth.
At the moment, what we're seeing in general is Transform U taking share from other suppliers where there's a gap or an opportunity in the category. The real opportunity we see is to put some investment behind the marketing, get the social activity right, put some influencers behind the brand, and hopefully, that actually stimulates further category growth.
You know, we're still seeing continued strength in margin coming from your exclusive product range. It was a great deal you did with Skull Shaver, was that last year or perhaps the year before? Do you see any other opportunities to do similar sorts of exclusive deals, like you did with Skull Shaver?
I think we mentioned, we've actually brought in, Mangroomer as well, just prior to Christmas.
Oh, yeah, of course.
Mangroomer is another exclusive arrangement we have. We see significant opportunity for that brand as well. I think what we're just demonstrating, Andrew, is we're starting to get a track record of taking these brands, which particularly are strong overseas, but just don't have the resources or the focus or time and effort to really focus on Australia and New Zealand. I think that's really where the opportunity is for Shaver Shop, is to come along, and obviously we know the market pretty well, and we've demonstrated that through Skull Shaver. We've, you know, got some promising thoughts behind the Mangroomer range, which, as I said, we really haven't activated our marketing strategy yet on that brand. It's obviously something that we're focusing on for the next 2-3 months.
Then just finishing it off around the products. Are you seeing any change in the competitive environment? I can't recall how long JB Hi-Fi have been stocking grooming products, but I walked through their store the other day, and I saw them stocking a product. Do you see them providing a similar sort of competition that the big supermarket that the big department stores provided? Is there really, and just going back to the broader question, any change in the competitive environment in the Australian market?
Not really. I mean, you know, obviously, JB have probably gained some traction in this area over the past few years, but I'd be speculating, and it is, it's probably more perhaps share off the traditional department stores. You know, the Myer and David Jones, who used to be reasonably solid in this category, but they've seemed to have lost significant focus in sort of small electrical personal care over the last 5-6 years. From our point of view, I'd be confident, Andrew, that we're still the dominant market leader, in the categories that we compete in and really haven't seen a material change over a number of years now in terms of competition or environment.
Dominant market player and the fact that you're able to sign deals like Skull Shaver and Mangroomer, I think a reflection of what the suppliers are seeing. Just going on to the online, pretty strong online growth, and I think at the last, the last result, and since then, you know, we've had discussions around the social media presence and the work you've put into improving that social media presence. Do you think that's what's driving your online growth, or there are some other dynamics at play there?
It's a combination. I think our organic traffic is up, so there's definitely some of the social activity that we're doing. You know, the influencer activity is generating some incremental sales online. I also think it comes down to our promotional program execution, Andrew. I think we've had a, you know, particularly strong promotional program over the last six or seven months, and we're still seeing a lot of traffic generated through paid search. Obviously, that's still a primary channel for our traffic, and obviously, then that's the balance of getting that conversion correct, because you're obviously trying to generate the traffic through paid search, but still make sure it's a profitable sale.
Okay. Excellent. Well done on that great result, guys. Thanks.
Thanks, Andrew. Andrew.
Once again, if you wish to ask a question, please press star one on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. Our next question is from Bruce McLeary with Burrell Stockbroking & Wealth Management. Please proceed.
Cameron, Larry, congrats on the result. Just on the trading update, Slide 20, the final point, 3 full store refits, 2 relocations planned for the second half. Can you just walk us through what sort of uplift in earnings and sales you expect once those have gone through? Also, can you also sort of describe how you handle the transition when you're doing a refit so your customers aren't disrupted or when you're relocating, and are they to bigger stores or what's the reason for those refits, relocations? Thanks.
Thanks. Thanks, Bruce. generally speaking, I'll answer your first question. In terms of the sales uplift that we tend to see after doing a refit, it generally results in around a 10% increase in the first year in sales, which flows through to profitability, obviously. Most of the refits that we do, and that's why we're sort of classifying them between refits or, and relocations, are where we update the look and feel of the store to the latest brand standards that we have.
Relocations are where we're choosing to move the store within a center, because it's either too small a store, and we think the opportunity to actually increase the size of the store is gonna lead to increased profitability, or we're in a location within the center that we just don't think is the right fit for our brand. In both those scenarios, we're looking for sort of similar types of returns, and certainly, if we're increasing the size of the store, we take some pretty prudent estimates on what we think the sales uplift is gonna be before we make any of those decisions to move the store. The real key drivers at the moment are the stores that we are doing are probably 15, maybe 10 to 15 years since the last refit.
They're reflecting some of the old brand standards that we had back in mid to late 2000s, decade or two early 2010s. Now that we've moved on to a much more contemporary look and feel with some of the colors that we're using. Still using the oranges to accent and make sure that our brand's recognized, but reducing the influence of the amount of orange that's actually in the storefront and across the store itself.
Does that answer your question, Bruce?
Yeah, pretty much so. Secondly, the exclusive brands, 21 out of 30, are your top sellers. There's a particular focus. You talk about the ones that you sign on, Skull Shaver and the others. There seems to be a less of a focus or no mention of... Is there any exclusive brands that over the period or over the last year or two, that you've decided not to continue, whether or not they've decided not to supply or you guys have just gone, "The margins aren't there. We're not gonna stock your product any further?
Yeah, there wouldn't be necessarily. Yeah, I mean, certainly at a product level, there would be in terms of, it wouldn't be significant, but it would be, you know, a few out there where we've just sort of thought this now crosses over with Transform-U or, you know, we don't wanna be held to a minimum purchase quantity per annum because we actually feel that that's a greater risk than actually the exclusive opportunity provides. I think there would be some examples of that, but certainly nothing material at this stage. It's kind of more sort of BAU. That kind of stuff happens pretty frequently. Although, yeah, obviously, we are seeing now that Transform-U is where it fills the gap.
If a supplier then, has a product in that space, and we've already filled the gap, and we're making great margins, and the customer's happy, well, obviously, that sort of spot's taken.
Yep. Okay. That's it from me at this stage. Thanks, guys.
Thanks, Bruce.
Thanks, Bruce. As a reminder, just star 1 on your telephone keypad, we will pause for a brief moment to see if there's any final questions. With no further questions, this will conclude today's call.