Unwanted Wesfarmers retail division back in the black.

 

Online IT and consumer electronics vendor Harris Technology has seen its revenues jump thanks to the COVID-19 outbreak.

 

The now online retailer, which was sold-off by Officeworks’ parent Wesfarmers in 2015,  more than doubled its sales in March as it became a preferred company to fit out home offices and home-schooling set-ups amid the COVID-19 lockdown.

 

The company is set to return to profitability for the 2020 financial year thanks to a boost in consumer PC and personal protective equipment (PPE) sales on the onset of the pandemic. 

 

The online retailer, which works with major e-commerce platforms such as Amazon, Catch and Kogan, said it expects to deliver profit before tax of $700,000 for the year ending 30 June 2020, compared to a loss before tax of $732,000.

 

Revenue is also expected to be up 44 per cent to $13 million, compared to $9 million in the year ended 30 June 2019.

 

The increases were driven by growth in Harris’s traditional IT and consumer electronics (IT/CE) division and the recently established PPE business, Pro-Hygiene. 

 

Pro-Hygiene has opened up new opportunities for the group with its offering of protective hygiene products including facemasks, hand sanitiser gels and alcohol wipes.