Online ticket marketplace Vivid Seats returned to profit in the second quarter of its 2021 financial year after the return of spectators led to a jump in revenue.
For the three months to June 30, revenue amounted to $115.5m (£84.0m/€98.6m), compared to a $28.9m loss in the same period last year. In Q2 of last year, almost all events were cancelled or postponed due to the pandemic.
The latest figures have been announced after Vivid Seats announced in April that it had agreed to go public via a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC), valuing the company at $1.95bn.
Many Major League Baseball, National Hockey League and National Baseball Association teams welcomed back significant numbers of fans in Q2, while sales of concert tickets also increased as artists announced performances for later dates.
As such, with fans now back at events, Vivid Seats saw its revenue return.
Marketplace gross order value (GOV) – the transactional amount of marketplace segment orders placed on the Vivid Seats platform inclusive of fees, exclusive of taxes and net of event cancellations in the period – rocketed from negative of $63.3m in 2020 to a positive result of $693.1m.
“We benefitted from the return of fans to the stands across sports and concerts nationwide as Covid-19 restrictions eased and consumers jumped at the opportunity to see their favourite events,” Vivid Seats chief executive Stan Chia said.
“While uncertainty persists as to the duration and severity of the pandemic, it is clear fans crave live experiences and will pursue what is available to them as events resume.”
Adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased from a loss of $48.3m to a positive figure of $36.2m.
In terms of costs, interest expense was the main outgoing at $16.8m, while Vivid Seats also reported $3.9m in transaction costs, $1.2m in equity-based compensation, $500,000 worth of depreciation and amortisation and $438,000 in litigation, settlements and related costs.
In addition, sales tax liability for the quarter totalled $10.7m, but despite these outgoings, Vivid Seats was able to post a profit of $2.6m for the quarter, up from a loss of $662.1m last year, though the 2020 figures did also include €573.8m in impairment charges.
Vivid Seats’ chief financial officer Lawrence Fey said: “In the second quarter, our financial results were strong. Revenue and adjusted EBITDA increased and we generated significant cash flow as the increase in orders resulted in a rapid rebuild of our working capital float.”
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