LightInTheBox (LITB) Q1 2026 Earnings Transcript

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Date

Tuesday, May 12, 2026 at 8 a.m. ET

Call participants

• Chief Executive Officer — Jian He
• Chief Financial Officer — Suhai Ji
• Operator
• Investor Relations — Serena Huang

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Takeaways

• Net Income -- $1.2 million, marking a record first quarter profit since 2022 and rising from $0.1 million in the prior-year period.
• Total Revenue -- $52 million, representing 11% year-over-year growth and the second consecutive quarter of double-digit top-line expansion.
• Gross Profit -- $34 million, up 10% year over year, with gross margin stable at 65%.
• Operating Expenses -- $33 million, increasing 7% year over year; comprised of $4 million in fulfillment (+5%), $25 million in selling and marketing (+13%), and $4 million in general and administrative (-15%).
• Branded Apparel Business -- Accounted for 24% of total revenue, increasing from 15% the previous year, and delivered over 81% year-over-year revenue growth.
• Operating Expenses as % of Revenue -- Decreased from 65% to 63%, indicating improved efficiency.
• Shareholder Strategy -- Ongoing share repurchase program and disciplined cost control explicitly referenced by management as integral to value creation.

Summary

Management reinforced their commitment to evolving LightInTheBox (NYSE:LITB) into a consumer lifestyle company, emphasizing ongoing growth in branded apparel and customer engagement strategies. Cost reductions in general and administrative expenses offset increases in other operational outlays, improving expense leverage. Seasonal commentary provided clarity on revenue cadence expectations for the remainder of the year.

• Jian He stated, Q1 is typically our weakest period due to the seasonality of our business. directly addressing cyclicality in quarterly performance.
• Suhai Ji said, We have successfully engineered a sustained business turnaround, not only on profit, but also on revenues.
• Management directly expressed confidence that 2026 will be another successful record-setting year.
• Branded apparel’s revenue share gain was highlighted as evidence of strategic execution and shifting product mix priorities.

Industry glossary

• Branded Apparel: Apparel products sold under a company-owned or exclusive label, often associated with higher margins and enhanced customer loyalty in e-commerce.

Full Conference Call Transcript

Jian He: Good morning, and good evening, everyone. Thank you for joining LightInTheBox's First Quarter 2026 Earnings Call. We are pleased to report an exciting first quarter results. Continuing the turnaround from last year, we achieved our eighth consecutive profitable quarter and a record first quarter profit of $1.2 million since 2022. This compared with just a growth of $0.1 million in the first quarter of last year. Please note that Q1 is typically our weakest period due to the seasonality of our business. Q2 picks up significantly as the season goes into spring and summer. Q3 may come down a little and Q4 picks up again to be ahead of Christmas.

We are also proud of the fact that Q1 marked our second consecutive quarter of year-over-year revenue growth with revenues returning to double-digit growth, increasing by 11% to $52 million. Our branded apparel business continued to gain strong momentum, growing over 81% year-over-year and already accounting for 24% of total revenue, up from 15% in the first quarter of 2025. These results reflect the continued successful execution of our strategy of evolving the LightInTheBox online platform into a consumer lifestyle company. By offering highly customized products that create the emotional resonance for festivals, holidays and special occasions, combined with our brand matrix strategy across women's fashion, golf apparel and light party dresses. We are driving stronger engagement and customer loyalty.

In summary, we had a very good head start for 2026. With sustained profitability, disciplined cost control and our ongoing share repurchase program, we believe we are well positioned to pursue continued revenue and profit growth as well as greater shareholder value through the rest of 2026. With that, I will now hand the call over to Suhai to go through our financial results.

Suhai Ji: Thank you, Mr. He. Good morning, and good evening, everyone. Before we go over our financials, please note that unless otherwise stated, all figures are presented in U.S. dollars. As our CEO mentioned in his remarks, we delivered excellent first quarter results in 2026. In the first quarter, our total revenues were $52 million, up 11% year-over-year. Compared to the year-over-year decrease in the first 3 quarters of last year, this marked our second consecutive top line growth. We have successfully engineered a sustained business turnaround, not only on profit, but also on revenues. The first quarter gross profit was $34 million, up 10% year-over-year. Gross margin remained relatively stable at 65%.

Total operating expenses in the first quarter increased 7% year-over-year to $33 million, of which fulfillment expenses increased by 5%, to $4 million, reflecting the growth in top line revenues; selling and marketing expenses increased by 13%, to $25 million; while general and administrative expenses decreased by 15%, to $4 million. Total operating expenses as a percentage of revenue decreased from 65% to 63%. Our net income in the first quarter reached $1.2 million compared to just $0.1 million in the same quarter last year, marking a record first quarter profit since 2022. So overall, we had a remarkable turnaround year in 2025 and are continuing the progress and momentum going into 2026 as reflected in our Q1 results.

We remain confident that 2026 will be another successful record-setting year. This concludes my remarks, and we are now open to your questions. So operator, please continue.

Operator: [Operator Instructions] There are no questions at this time. I'll now hand back to Ms. Huang for closing remarks.

Serena Huang: Thank you once again for joining us today. If you have further questions, please feel free to contact LightInTheBox's Investor Relations through the contact information provided on our website. Have a great day.

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