QVC Group Inc (QVCGA) 2023 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Welcome to the Qurate Retail, Inc. 2023 Q3 Earnings Call. (Operator Instructions) As a reminder, this conference will be recorded November 3. I would now like to turn the call over to Shane Kleinstein, Vice President, Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

歡迎參加 Qurate Retail, Inc. 2023 年第三季財報電話會議。 （操作員說明）謹此提醒，本次會議將於 11 月 3 日進行錄製。我現在想將電話轉給投資者關係副總裁 Shane Kleinstein。請繼續。

Thank you. Before we begin, we'd like to remind everyone that this call includes certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual events or results could differ materially due to a number of risks and uncertainties, including those mentioned in the most recent Forms 10-K and 10-Q filed by our company and QVC with the SEC.

謝謝。在開始之前，我們想提醒大家，本次電話會議包含1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法案》含義內的某些前瞻性陳述。由於許多風險和不確定因素，實際事件或結果可能會存在重大差異，包括我們公司和 QVC 向 SEC 提交的最新 10-K 和 10-Q 表格中提到的內容。

These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this call, and Qurate Retail expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to disseminate any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement contained herein to reflect any change in Qurate Retail's expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based. Please note that we have published slides to accompany the earnings release.

這些前瞻性陳述僅代表截至本次電話會議之日的情況，Qurate Retail 明確不承擔任何義務或承諾傳播本文所含任何前瞻性陳述的任何更新或修訂，以反映Qurate Retail 對此預期的任何變化，或任何此類聲明所依據的事件、條件或情況的任何變更。請注意，我們已經發布了伴隨收益發布的幻燈片。

On today's call, we will discuss certain non-GAAP financial measures, including adjusted OIBDA, adjusted OIBDA margin, free cash flow and constant currency. Information regarding the comparable GAAP measures along with required definitions and reconciliations, including preliminary note and schedules 1 through 3, can be found in the earnings press release issued today or our earnings presentation, which are available on our website.

在今天的電話會議上，我們將討論某些非 GAAP 財務指標，包括調整後的 OIBDA、調整後的 OIBDA 利潤率、自由現金流量和固定匯率。有關可比較GAAP 衡量標準的資訊以及所需的定義和調節，包括初步說明和附表1 至3，可在今天發布的收益新聞稿或我們的收益演示文稿中找到，這些資訊可在我們的網站上找到。

Today speaking on the earnings call, we have Qurate Retail President and CEO, David Rollinson; Quarate Retail Group CFO, Bill Wafford; and Qurate Retail, Executive Chairman, Greg Maffei. Now I'll hand the call over to David.

今天，Qurate Retail 總裁兼執行長 David Rollinson 在財報電話會議上發表演說。 Quarate 零售集團財務長 Bill Wafford；和 Qurate Retail 執行主席 Greg Maffei。現在我將把電話轉給大衛。

Thank you, Shane and good morning to everyone. Thank you for joining us today and for your interest in Qurate Retail. We unveiled Project Athens last year as our strategic multiyear framework to transform Qurate Retail focused on double-digit growth in OIBDA and cash flow and stabilized revenue through 2024 out of the 2022 baseline. Our 2023 1st half initiatives were designed to increase operating free cash flow through working capital. And our second half initiatives are primarily margin focused. The transformation plan is playing out as we anticipated with tangible progress in Q3 despite a challenging discretionary retail backdrop.

謝謝你，謝恩，大家早安。感謝您今天加入我們並感謝您對 Qurate Retail 的興趣。我們去年推出了雅典項目，作為 Qurate Retail 轉型的多年戰略框架，重點關注 OIBDA 和現金流的兩位數增長，並在 2024 年之前穩定收入（超出 2022 年基線）。我們 2023 年上半年的措施旨在透過營運資本增加營運自由現金流。我們下半年的措施主要是關注利潤。儘管零售零售環境充滿挑戰，但轉型計劃正在按我們的預期進行，並在第三季取得實際進展。

Let me walk through a few of the highlights for the quarter. First, we grew consolidated OIBDA, the first quarterly OIBDA growth, since Q2 2021. Total Qurate Retail grew OIBDA 54%. I will remind you that we sold Zulily earlier in the year, in part to benefit total company profitability. Excluding Zulily from prior year results, OIBDA was up 35% in constant currency. Second, we grew OIBDA at all 3 of the businesses. This growth was driven by project Athens and other work streams across the organization focused on refreshing our merchandise assortment, enhancing our programming, sharpening our pricing and improving our productivity and lowering our cost to serve. Third, we sustained gross margin improvement at our core video commerce businesses. These gains reflect successful execution on our elevated merchandise and pricing strategies and meaningful improvement and fulfillment operations to reduce costs, improve efficiencies and manage inventory.

讓我來回顧一下本季的一些亮點。首先，我們實現了綜合 OIBDA 的成長，這是自 2021 年第二季以來首次季度 OIBDA 成長。Qurate Retail 的 OIBDA 總額成長了 54%。我要提醒您的是，我們在今年稍早出售了 Zulily，部分原因是為了提高公司整體獲利能力。如果不包括上一年業績中的 Zulily，OIBDA 以固定匯率計算成長了 35%。其次，我們在所有 3 項業務中都發展了 OIBDA。這一成長是由雅典專案和整個組織內的其他工作流程推動的，這些工作流程專注於更新我們的商品種類、增強我們的規劃、提高我們的定價、提高我們的生產力和降低我們的服務成本。第三，我們核心視訊商務業務的毛利率持續改善。這些收益反映出我們成功執行了提升的商品和定價策略，以及有意義的改進和履行操作，以降低成本、提高效率和管理庫存。

Fourth, we grew free cash flow $464 million year-over-year in the first 9 months of 2023. This growth was due to improved operating cash flow from higher earnings and working capital gains. Fifth, we substantially moderated the rate of decline in revenue. Qurate Retail revenue, excluding Zulily from prior year results, declined 3% in Q3, down from high-single-digit in the first half of 2023. We are proud of the teams and the hard work underlying our progress over the past 12 to 18 months, especially as we navigated massive impacts from post-pandemic supply chain challenges and the fire at our former Rocky Mount fulfillment center.

第四，2023 年頭 9 個月，我們的自由現金流年增了 4.64 億美元。這一增長是由於收益和營運資本收益增加而改善了營運現金流。五是收入下降幅度明顯放緩。 Qurate 零售收入（不包括去年業績中的 Zulily）在第三季度下降了 3%，低於 2023 年上半年的高個位數。我們為過去 12 至 18 年間取得進步的團隊和辛勤工作感到自豪幾個月來，特別是當我們應對大流行後供應鏈挑戰和前落基山履行中心火災的巨大影響時。

Over this time, we have made meaningful improvements to execution. We reorganized our U.S. video commerce businesses and attract the key talent throughout the organization. In fulfillment, we negotiated better ocean and domestic freight rigs, improved efficiency and managed inventory to alleviate the detention and demurrage charges that follow the fire and post-pandemic supply chain disruption. We expanded product margins by refreshing our merchandise assortment with higher quality products, rotating into higher-performing categories and higher price point subcategories and affecting strategic price increases.

在此期間，我們在執行方面做出了有意義的改進。我們重組了美國視訊商務業務，並吸引了整個組織的關鍵人才。在履行過程中，我們協商了更好的海運和國內貨運平台，提高了效率並管理了庫存，以減輕火災和疫情後供應鏈中斷帶來的滯期費和滯期費。我們透過用更高品質的產品更新我們的商品種類、轉向更高性能的類別和更高價位的子類別以及影響策略性價格上漲來擴大產品利潤。

We reinvigorated our core daily programming, the today's special value at QVC and today's special at HSN with elevated merchandise assortment, enhanced programming, events and reengaged hosts. We have also returned these specials to time Limited 24-hour event, reinfusing a sense of urgency. From these efforts, we beat expectations on per minute productivity and overall TSV/TS performance at both QVC and HSN. We effected workforce reductions throughout the company.

我們透過豐富的商品種類、增強的節目、活動和重新參與的主持人，重振了我們的核心日常節目、QVC 的今日特別價值和 HSN 的今日特別。我們也將這些特價商品帶回 24 小時限時活動中，重新註入緊迫感。透過這些努力，我們在 QVC 和 HSN 上的每分鐘生產力和整體 TSV/TS 性能超出了預期。我們在整個公司範圍內進行了裁員。

While these were difficult decisions, they are right for the long-term health of the business. And lastly, we conducted a deep dive customer analysis and have enacted changes that are beginning to stabilize the customer file. We expect these foundational improvements and Project Athens work streams to continue to drive progress.

雖然這些都是艱難的決定，但它們對於企業的長期健康發展是正確的。最後，我們進行了深入的客戶分析，並實施了一些改變，開始穩定客戶檔案。我們預計這些基礎性改進和雅典專案工作流程將繼續推動進度。

Now let me discuss each of our 3 businesses. QxH increased OIBDA 41%, driven by 480 basis points of gross margin improvement. From a top line perspective, QxH moderated the rate of decline in Q3 with Q3 down 3% compared to mid-high single-digit declines in the first half of 2023. Our total sales outperformed the discretionary retail market. We achieved a better balance between unit volume and average selling price. Unit volume declined 3%, which was an improvement from the high single-digit decline in the first half of 2023, largely a function of higher quality product assortment. We continue to drive higher pricing primarily through our merchandise mix with average selling price up 1% in Q3.

現在讓我逐一討論我們的 3 項業務。在毛利率提高 480 個基點的推動下，QxH 的 OIBDA 成長了 41%。從營收角度來看，QxH 減緩了第三季的下降速度，與2023 年上半年的中高個位數降幅相比，第三季下降了3%。我們的總銷售額跑贏了非必需品零售市場。我們在單位銷售和平均售價之間取得了更好的平衡。單位銷售量下降了 3%，較 2023 年上半年的高個位數下降有所改善，這主要是由於產品種類品質提高。我們主要透過商品組合繼續推動更高的定價，第三季平均售價上漲 1%。

From an operational perspective, QxH continues to lower cost and improve delivery times. Rates from our new domestic parcel contract took effect in late July, and our operational cost per unit declined 12% in Q3. Our order to delivery time declined 2%. Our refresh merchandise assortment and enhanced programming are contributing to this improving revenue performance. In terms of viewership, minutes viewed on our 5 linear channels increased 15% year-over-year in Q3.

從營運角度來看，QxH 不斷降低成本並縮短交貨時間。我們新的國內包裹合約費率於 7 月下旬生效，第三季我們的單位營運成本下降了 12%。我們的訂單到交貨時間下降了 2%。我們更新的商品種類和增強的節目安排有助於提高收入績效。就收視率而言，第三季我們 5 個線性頻道的觀看分鐘數較去年同期成長 15%。

The number of new own items grew low double digits in Q3, which were met with strong consumer demand. QVC continues to enhance its programming for its core customer. Earlier this year, I told you about a limited-run series, Over 50 & Fabulous. We broadcast season 2 of the series for 6 weeks from mid-August to late-September. We enhanced strategies from season 1 and improved the shows sales per minute productivity.

第三季新自有商品數量以低點兩位數成長，滿足了強勁的消費者需求。 QVC 繼續為其核心客戶增強其節目編排。今年早些時候，我曾向您介紹過一個限量版系列《Over 50 & Fabulous》。我們從八月中旬到九月下旬播出了該系列第二季，為期六週。我們從第一季開始就加強了策略，並提高了節目每分鐘的銷售效率。

To date, there are more than 26.5 million views of Over 50 & Fabulous across social and digital platforms. For the series finale, we hosted customers for an in studio live show an after-party live stream. Tickets for that event sold out in 5 minutes. Looking at the category performance in the third quarter. QXH saw a turnaround in the home category, driven by fresher products, exciting events and inspiring personalities. We experienced year-over-year growth in demand during our Christmas in July event at QVC as well as at HSN during its July birthday month.

迄今為止，《Over 50 & Fabulous》在社群和數位平台上的觀看次數已超過 2,650 萬次。對於該系列的結局，我們接待了客戶進行演播室現場表演和餘興派對直播。活動的門票在 5 分鐘內就售空了。看看第三季的品類表現。在更新鮮的產品、令人興奮的活動和鼓舞人心的個性的推動下，QXH 看到了家居類別的轉變。在 QVC 的 7 月聖誕節活動以及 HSN 的 7 月生日月期間，我們經歷了需求同比增長。

Food and kitchen gadgets were particularly strong as we leaned on our celebrity chefs like David Venable and Wolfgang Puck, proprietary brands such as Kitchen HQ, and specialty events and programming, such as our foody Travel series, and Foody Fest.

食物和廚房小工具尤其強大，因為我們依靠 David Venable 和 Wolfgang Puck 等名廚、Kitchen HQ 等專有品牌以及美食旅行系列和 Foody Fest 等特色活動和節目。

Home decor demand improved, driven by seasonal products, candles, storage and a 30th anniversary event with Valerie Parr Hill. QVC U.S. continues to have strength in its wellness and supplements product offering. At HSN, the relaunch of Joy Mungana has drawn a number of our reactivated customers back to the platform. In fashion, we experienced growth in accessories, led by higher demand for footwear and loungewear, including loafers, wellness footwear and brands like Barefoot Dreams and Cuddl Duds.

在季節性產品、蠟燭、儲物以及 Valerie Parr Hill 舉辦的 30 週年紀念活動的推動下，家居裝飾需求有所改善。 QVC U.S. 在健康和補充劑產品供應方面繼續保持優勢。在 HSN，Joy Mungana 的重新推出吸引了許多重新激活的客戶回到該平台。在時尚領域，由於對鞋類和家居服的需求增加，包括樂福鞋、健康鞋以及 Barefoot Dreams 和 Cuddl Duds 等品牌，我們經歷了配件的成長。

In September, QVC refreshed as Monday night fashion lineup featuring Logo by Lori Goldstein, the relaunch of PM Style with Amy Stran and new shows accessorized with Sean and Sean on Style. Each show was developed to deliver a strong fashion point of view and include special sets and fresh production elements. At HSN, we were pleased to launch new brands and offers including C. Wonder by Christian Siriano, Birkenstock for the first time as a today's special Sharp FlexStyle hair tool and Sofia Vergara's Toty beauty line.

9 月，QVC 更新了周一晚時尚陣容，其中包括 Lori Goldstein 的 Logo、Amy Stran 重新推出的 PM Style 以及 Sean 和 Sean on Style 的新秀。每場秀都旨在傳達強烈的時尚觀點，並包含特殊的佈景和新鮮的製作元素。在 HSN，我們很高興推出新品牌和優惠，包括 Christian Siriano 的 C. Wonder、首次作為當今特別的 Sharp FlexStyle 美髮工具的 Birkenstock 以及 Sofia Vergara 的 Toty 美容系列。

Now let me touch on QxH customers. On a quarterly basis, total count declined 8% in the third quarter, partially offset by a 6% increase in average spend per customer, resulting in an overall 3% decline in revenue. The rate of declining count moderated in Q3 from the low double-digit declines in the first 2 quarters of 2023. We're seeing the biggest churn from the low end of our customer file.

現在讓我談談 QxH 客戶。按季度計算，第三季總人數下降了 8%，但每位客戶的平均支出增加了 6%，部分抵消了這一影響，導致整體收入下降了 3%。與 2023 年前兩季的低兩位數下降相比，第三季的數量下降速度有所放緩。我們看到客戶檔案中低端客戶的最大流失。

On Slide 8 of our earnings presentation, you can see we are stabilizing the trailing 12-month count near $8.2 million, down only modestly from $8.3 million at the end of the second quarter. Please note that while our press release discloses customer count on a trailing 12-month basis, this is a lag-on indicator and does not reflect the progress in Q3. The increase in average spend was driven by our existing and best customers and reflects our higher quality product assortment.

在我們收益簡報的幻燈片 8 中，您可以看到我們將過去 12 個月的計數穩定在 820 萬美元附近，僅比第二季末的 830 萬美元略有下降。請注意，雖然我們的新聞稿揭露了過去 12 個月的客戶數量，但這是一個落後指標，並不反映第三季的進展。平均支出的成長是由我們現有的和最好的客戶推動的，反映了我們更高品質的產品種類。

The average dollar spend for each of these cohorts was the highest of any quarter in 2023. We are taking a variety of actions to attract new customers, retain customers and reactivate former customers. We have launched new programs and formats on both linear and digital forms. We have offered gifts and vouchers and have refined and enhanced our marketing spend, both of which have yielded high returns.

這些群體的平均支出是 2023 年任何季度中最高的。我們正在採取各種行動來吸引新客戶、留住客戶並重新激活老客戶。我們推出了線性和數位形式的新節目和格式。我們提供了禮品和代金券，並細化和加強了我們的行銷支出，這兩項都產生了高回報。

We have created new on-site experiences to have letters from the business presidents to recognize and appreciate our best customers, and we are testing a pilot loyalty program. As a result of these efforts, we're pleased to report that new customers grew 8% at QXH in Q3, which was the first quarter of growth, since Q1 2021. This growth was primarily attributed to strategic targeting of promotions based on marketing channel and product categories.

我們創造了新的現場體驗，以獲得業務總裁的來信，以認可和感謝我們最好的客戶，並且我們正在測試試點忠誠度計劃。經過這些努力，我們很高興地報告，QXH 第三季的新客戶成長了 8%，這是自 2021 年第一季以來的第一季成長。這一成長主要歸功於基於行銷管道的促銷策略定位和產品類別。

We are constantly reviewing our customer acquisition costs and carefully managing overall return on our marketing efforts. We shift marketing spend to capitalize on opportunities in the market, where we can efficiently acquire customers in our target demographic and track their lifetime value. We will continue to test, learn and scale initiatives. We are executing with more success at a faster pace now than a year ago, and I look forward to telling you more on future calls.

我們不斷審查客戶獲取成本，並仔細管理行銷工作的整體回報。我們改變行銷支出，以利用市場機會，從而有效地獲取目標人群中的客戶並追蹤他們的終身價值。我們將繼續測試、學習和擴展措施。與一年前相比，我們現在正在以更快的速度取得更大的成功，我期待在未來的電話會議上告訴您更多。

Before closing on QxH, let me provide a view on the important holiday season. Our customers are looking forward to activities with friends and family and more importantly, ready for holiday shopping. Our target customer is mindful of our budget and cognizant of inflation, particularly for groceries and gas. Therefore, it is important for us to incite and inspire her with fresh products and compelling value.

在 QxH 結束之前，讓我談談對重要假期的看法。我們的顧客期待與朋友和家人一起參加活動，更重要的是，準備好假日購物。我們的目標客戶專注於我們的預算並了解通貨膨脹，特別是雜貨和天然氣。因此，我們必須用新鮮的產品和令人信服的價值來刺激和啟發她。

From a merchandise point of view, we feel good about our assortment and are in a substantially better inventory position than 1 year ago. At QVC, we are excited about several brand extensions and limited time collections from key brands. These include Susan Graver, Kim Gravel, Dennis Basso and Denim & Company. We have new product launches, including Laurence Zaria and a new private label cashmere sweater collection from Pure Splendor. We are extending our chef family with new culinary lines, from [Artee Sukari] and a cookware line from Carla Hall. In beauty, we have exclusive holiday packages from key brands. These include Philosophy, Elemis, Peter Thomas Roth and more. In addition, QVC is the exclusive retailer for Beekmans launch in November of its toll house partnership.

從商品的角度來看，我們對我們的品種感覺良好，並且庫存狀況比一年前要好得多。在 QVC，我們對主要品牌的多個品牌延伸和限時系列感到興奮。其中包括 Susan Graver、Kim Gravel、Dennis Basso 和 Denim & Company。我們推出了新產品，包括 Laurence Zaria 和 Pure Splendor 的全新自有品牌羊絨毛衣系列。我們正在透過 [Artee Sukari] 的新烹飪系列和 Carla Hall 的炊具系列來擴展我們的廚師家族。在美容方面，我們提供主要品牌的獨家假期套餐。其中包括哲學、Elemis、彼得·托馬斯·羅斯等。此外，QVC 是 Beekmans 於 11 月推出的收費站合作夥伴關係的獨家零售商。

HSM will also inspire with new merchandise, including and exclusive with Dolly Parton for the launch of our new Rock Album; Katharine McPhee's Radiance by absolute collaboration. Erin Andrews licensed sports launch with Fanatics and the launch of Tarte Beauty as of today's special. We'll also have all our celebrity chefs cooking their holiday favorites and celebrity designers bringing new and exciting assortments.

HSM 也將推出新商品，包括與 Dolly Parton 獨家合作推出的新搖滾專輯；凱瑟琳麥克菲的光輝源自於絕對的合作。艾琳安德魯斯 (Erin Andrews) 與 Fanatics 合作推出體育產品，並在今天的特別節目中推出 Tarte Beauty。我們還將邀請所有名廚烹調他們最喜愛的節日美食，名流設計師也會帶來令人興奮的新菜色。

Looking now at QVC International. Like QxH, we are implementing a transformational program that is focused on margin opportunities, content and broadcast strategies and optimizing execution. These efforts are paying dividends. QVC International grew revenue and OIBDA compared to last year and sustained gross margin gains from Q2. Growth was stronger in the U.K. and Germany as euro area inflation leveled off and the U.K. was in comparison to the Queens passing last year.

現在看看QVC國際。與 QxH 一樣，我們正在實施一項轉型計劃，重點關注利潤機會、內容和廣播策略以及優化執行。這些努力正在發揮成效。與去年相比，QVC International 的營收和 OIBDA 有所成長，毛利率較第二季持續成長。隨著歐元區通膨趨於平穩，英國和德國的成長更為強勁，而且英國與去年的皇后區相比，成長更為強勁。

Japan was flat as consumer sentiment continued to be affected by higher energy costs. QVC International's transformation actions are on track to deliver substantial OIBDA opportunities that will achieve full run rate by 2025. Looking to the holiday season, we remain optimistic about our product assortment and campaigns that we believe resonate with our customers. At both of our video commerce businesses, I'm especially pleased that we grew OIBDA, while still investing in growth initiatives.

日本表現平淡，因為消費者信心持續受到能源成本上漲的影響。 QVC International 的轉型行動預計將提供大量 OIBDA 機會，到 2025 年將實現滿載運轉。展望假期，我們對我們的產品種類和活動保持樂觀態度，相信它們會引起客戶的共鳴。在我們的兩個視訊商務業務中，我特別高興的是我們發展了 OIBDA，同時仍投資於成長計劃。

Our domestic streaming operations have grown revenue and customer engagement year-to-date in 2023. The free ad-supported portion is the fastest-growing sector. In March, we launched soon. Our next generation video and live stream shopping platform and app.

2023 年迄今為止，我們的國內串流媒體業務收入和客戶參與度均有所增長。免費廣告支援的部分是成長最快的部分。三月份，我們很快就推出了。我們的下一代視訊和直播購物平台和應用程式。

We continue to build momentum in its beta phase. At QVC International, we launched integrated experience in the U.K. and Germany with a focus on gardening and food and kitchen, respectively. Both have shown positive customer engagement and we believe we can scale to other category segments and markets over time. Looking at Cornerstone. The overall home sector remains highly promotional and competitive. Demand for most categories was soft across the 4 Cornerstone brands.

我們繼續在測試階段積蓄動力。在 QVC International，我們在英國和德國推出了綜合體驗，分別專注於園藝、食物和廚房。兩者都表現出了積極的客戶參與度，我們相信隨著時間的推移，我們可以擴展到其他類別細分市場和市場。看著基石。整個家居行業仍然具有高度的促銷性和競爭性。四個基石品牌對大多數類別的需求疲軟。

Despite the challenging environment, we focus on factors in our control, managing inventory and lowering supply chain and operating costs. As a result, the business generated OIBDA growth in the quarter. We have seen continued progress in our retail store strategy as customers are gravitating to our new physical stores. Accordingly, we are planning to open 5 new retail stores by the first half of 2024.

儘管環境充滿挑戰，我們仍專注於控制因素、管理庫存以及降低供應鏈和營運成本。因此，該業務在本季度實現了 OIBDA 成長。隨著客戶被我們的新實體店所吸引，我們的零售店策略不斷取得進展。因此，我們計劃在 2024 年上半年開設 5 家新零售店。

In closing, our Q3 results are in line with our Project Athens plans and amplify our confidence in our 2024 objectives. Going into Q4, we are cognizant of the challenges from inflation, interest rates and geopolitical events. We remain steadfast in our transformation. We recognize we have much work still ahead of us. We remain confident in our ability to execute and drive results. The foundational changes we have enacted and the dedication from our teams are materializing and better financial results. We expect to sustain progress going forward, and I want to reiterate our expectations for a double-digit CAGR for OIBDA and free cash flow and stable revenue through 2024. Now I'll turn the call to Bill to discuss the financial results of each of our businesses in more detail.

最後，我們第三季的業績符合我們的雅典計劃計劃，增強了我們對 2024 年目標的信心。進入第四季度，我們認識到通膨、利率和地緣政治事件帶來的挑戰。我們堅定不移地轉型。我們認識到我們還有很多工作要做。我們對執行和推動成果的能力仍然充滿信心。我們所實施的根本性變革和團隊的奉獻精神正在實現，並且取得了更好的財務表現。我們預計未來將繼續取得進展，我想重申我們對 OIBDA 實現兩位數複合年增長率以及到 2024 年自由現金流和穩定收入的期望。現在我將致電 Bill，討論每個公司的財務業績我們的業務更詳細。

Thank you, David, and good morning, everyone. Unless otherwise noted, my comments compare financial performance for the 3 months ended September 30, 2023, for the same period in 2022. Starting with QxH. Revenue declined 3%, primarily on lower unit volume. These pressures were partially offset by 1% growth in average selling price and a 6% increase in average spend per customer. From a category perspective, QxH experienced growth in accessories, home and jewelry, offset by declines in electronics, apparel and beauty. As David mentioned, we experienced a turnaround in home, where revenue increased 2%. This growth was mainly due to higher demand for cookware, food and seasonal products.

謝謝大衛，大家早安。除非另有說明，我的評論比較的是截至 2023 年 9 月 30 日的三個月與 2022 年同期的財務表現。從 QxH 開始。收入下降 3%，主要是由於單位銷售下降。這些壓力被平均售價成長 1% 和每位客戶平均支出成長 6% 部分抵銷。從品類角度來看，QxH 配件、家居和珠寶領域實現了成長，但被電子產品、服裝和美容領域的下滑所抵消。正如 David 所提到的，我們的家居業務出現了好轉，收入成長了 2%。這一增長主要是由於對炊具、食品和季節性產品的需求增加。

Accessories grew 7%, primarily due to broad-based strength in footwear and higher demand for loungewear. Apparel was down 8%. We experienced softness in classic and contemporary apparel, partially offset by growth in outerwear. Beauty declined 7%. This performance was mainly due to declines in beauty devices and color, partially offset by higher demand for hair care. The decline in our electronics revenue by 18% was partially driven by the softness of the category in the market.

配件增加了 7%，主要是由於鞋類的廣泛優勢以及對家居服的需求增加。服裝下降了 8%。我們經歷了經典和現代服裝的疲軟，但部分被外套的成長所抵消。美妝下降7%。這一業績主要歸因於美容設備和色彩的下降，但部分被護髮需求的增加所抵消。我們的電子產品收入下降 18%，部分原因是市場該類別的疲軟。

We continue to strategically pull back on electronics airtime as we focus on higher margin home and fashion categories. Adjusted OIBDA margin increased 380 basis points. Looking at the third quarter performance in more detail. Gross profit grew 480 basis points, mainly due to favorable fulfillment, product margins and inventory obsolescence. Fulfillment expenses improved 220 basis points due to Project Assets initiatives, less detention into mirage costs and favorable rates from our new parcel carrier contract that went into effect in late July.

我們繼續策略性地減少電子產品的投放時間，因為我們專注於利潤率更高的家居和時尚類別。調整後的 OIBDA 利潤率增加了 380 個基點。更詳細地了解第三季的業績。毛利成長 480 個基點，主要得益於良好的履行情況、產品利潤率和庫存陳舊。由於專案資產措施、減少了海市蜃樓成本的滯留以及我們於 7 月底生效的新包裹承運合約的優惠費率，配送費用減少了 220 個基點。

Product margins increased 185 basis points, driven by a mix shift to higher-margin products, less clearance due to improved inventory health and initiatives to increase initial margin. Inventory obsolescence declined, reflecting a favorable composition of higher quality inventory compared to the prior year. Operating expenses were favorable by approximately 30 basis points due to fewer customer service contacts partially offset by higher commissions.

產品利潤率成長了 185 個基點，其推動因素包括向利潤率較高的產品的混合轉型、庫存健康狀況改善導致的清倉減少以及提高初始利潤率的舉措。庫存報廢下降，反映出與前一年相比，優質庫存組成有利。由於客戶服務聯繫減少，部分被佣金增加所抵消，營運費用有利約 30 個基點。

SG&A was unfavorable by approximately 120 basis points. About half of the pressure is from the transformation-related costs associated with project assets. Marketing expenses were 20 basis points of pressure, due to sales deleverage. These headwinds were partially offset by lower bad debt expense, reflecting provisional adjustments and lower installment counts.

SG&A 不利約 120 個基點。大約一半的壓力來自與專案資產相關的轉型相關成本。由於銷售去槓桿化，行銷費用面臨 20 個基點的壓力。這些不利因素被壞帳費用減少部分抵消，反映臨時調整和分期付款數量減少。

Moving to QVC International. My comments will focus on constant currency results. Revenue increased 1%, primarily on higher unit volume. Our largest markets in Europe, QVC Germany and the U.K. letter performance. Japan was flat and Italy declined moderately. From a category perspective, QVC International experienced growth in beauty, home and apparel, partially offset by a decline in electronics.

搬到QVC國際。我的評論將集中於不變的貨幣結果。營收成長 1%，主要是由於單位銷售增加。我們最大的市場在歐洲，QVC德國和英國信績。日本持平，義大利略有下降。從品類角度來看，QVC International 在美容、家居和服裝領域經歷了成長，但部分被電子產品的下滑所抵消。

Adjusted OIBDA increased 23% and adjusted OIBDA margin improved 210 basis points. These gains were driven by a 140 basis point increase in gross margin mainly due to improved product margins and lower inventory obsolescence. Product margin gains were driven by lower supply chain costs and a mix shift to higher-margin products. Fulfillment was unfavorable 15 basis points, primarily due to a $4 million of rent in sale-leaseback transactions in January and increased labor costs.

調整後的 OIBDA 成長了 23%，調整後的 OIBDA 利潤率提高了 210 個基點。這些收益是由毛利率提高 140 個基點推動的，這主要是由於產品利潤率的提高和庫存報廢率的降低。產品利潤率的成長是由較低的供應鏈成本和向高利潤率產品的混合轉變所推動的。履行情況不利 15 個基點，主要是由於 1 月份售後回租交易產生 400 萬美元的租金以及勞動成本增加。

SG&A was modestly unfavorable due to higher fixed costs from outside services and management incentive accruals, partially offset by lower marketing expense. As David said, QVC International is executing its transformational plan and is on track to deliver significant run rate OIBDA opportunities by 2025.

由於外部服務和管理激勵應計費用的固定成本較高，行銷費用較低，部分抵銷了銷售、管理和行政費用（SG&A）的不利影響。正如 David 所說，QVC International 正在執行其轉型計劃，並預計在 2025 年之前提供重要的 OIBDA 機會。

Moving to Cornerstone. Revenue declined 13% in the quarter. The broader home industry remains highly promotional, requiring cornerstone to offer promotions to stay competitive. We experienced soft demand in most home categories as well as in apparel at Garnet Hill. Despite the revenue decline, Cornerstone adjusted OIBDA increased 10%, mainly due to favorable supply chain costs from lower ocean shipping rates and less detention in the marriage costs. These gains were partially offset by increased promotional activity and higher fixed cost overhead, reflecting the opening of 3 new stores in the past year.

搬到基石。該季度營收下降 13%。更廣泛的家居行業仍然高度促銷，需要基石提供促銷活動以保持競爭力。我們在 Garnet Hill 的大多數家居品類以及服裝領域都經歷了需求疲軟。儘管收入下降，基石調整後的 OIBDA 仍成長了 10%，這主要是由於海運費率降低和結婚成本滯留減少帶來的有利供應鏈成本。這些收益部分被促銷活動的增加和固定成本的增加所抵消，反映出去年開設了 3 家新店。

Turning to cash flow. And year-to-date capital expenditures were $151 million. For all of 2023, we expect capital expenditures to be approximately $250 million. We spent $111 million on renewals of our TV distribution contracts in the first 9 months of 2023. Our TV distribution payments can fluctuate year-over-year depending on renewal cycles, though we continue to expect the 2-year average to be approximately $100 million. We have already covered the majority of our 2023 distribution payments through September. Free cash flow for the first 9 months of 2023 with a source of $359 million versus a use of $105 million last year. The year-over-year improvement was attributable to increased cash flow from operations, driven by higher earnings and working capital improvements.

轉向現金流。年初至今的資本支出為 1.51 億美元。我們預計 2023 年全年的資本支出約為 2.5 億美元。 2023 年頭 9 個月，我們花了 1.11 億美元在續約電視發行合約。我們的電視發行付款可能會根據續約週期而同比波動，但我們仍然預計 2 年平均金額約為 1 億美元。截至 9 月份，我們已經支付了 2023 年分配付款的大部分。 2023 年前 9 個月的自由現金流來源為 3.59 億美元，而去年的使用量為 1.05 億美元。同比改善歸因於獲利增加和營運資本改善推動營運現金流增加。

This was partially offset by higher TV distribution payments year-over-year. In Q4, we anticipate generating additional year-over-year OIBDA gains, which will continue to benefit cash flow. Looking at our debt profile. On September 30, we had $995 million drawn on the QVC revolver, down $435 million in the third quarter with $2.1 billion in available capacity. As of September 30, 2023, Qurate Retail had total cash of $1.1 billion, of which $279 million was at QVC Inc., $448 million was at Liberty Interactive LLC and $329 million was at Qurate Retail Inc.

這被電視發行費用年增部分抵銷。在第四季度，我們預計 OIBDA 會產生額外的年比收益，這將繼續有利於現金流。看看我們的債務狀況。 9 月 30 日，我們從 QVC 左輪手槍提取了 9.95 億美元，比第三季減少了 4.35 億美元，可用容量為 21 億美元。截至2023年9月30日，Qurate Retail擁有現金總額11億美元，其中QVC Inc.擁有2.79億美元，Liberty Interactive LLC擁有4.48億美元，Qurate Retail Inc.擁有3.29億美元。

Our leverage ratio, as defined by the QVC revolving credit facility was 2.6x. During 2022 and 2023, we took substantial steps to generate liquidity and position ourselves for the successful execution of our transformation plan. We believe that our debt level is manageable and our current cushion is sufficient in relation to the 4.5x maximum net leverage covenant threshold specified in our credit facility. Note that covenant OIBDA includes adjusted OIBDA of QVC and Cornerstone.

根據 QVC 循環信貸額度的定義，我們的槓桿率為 2.6 倍。 2022 年和 2023 年期間，我們採取了實質措施來產生流動性，並為成功執行轉型計畫做好了準備。我們相信，我們的債務水準是可控的，我們目前的緩衝對於我們信貸安排中規定的 4.5 倍最大淨槓桿契約門檻是足夠的。請注意，契約 OIBDA 包括 QVC 和 Cornerstone 的調整後 OIBDA。

The gains on the sale-leaseback transactions for the 4 quarters following such transactions and as of the beginning of this year also includes a portion of the next 12 months' expected cost savings. Our Q3 performance is a clear indication that we are effectively delivering on end Project Athens. We grew OIBDA and generated gains in working capital, which in turn led to a significant enhancement in our year-to-date cash flow from operations. We remain confident in our ability to sustain OIBDA growth in Q4 and deliver on our transformation objectives. With that, I'll turn the call over to Greg.

此類交易後 4 個季度以及截至今年年初的售後回租交易收益還包括未來 12 個月預期成本節省的一部分。我們第三季的表現清楚地表明我們正在有效地交付雅典專案。我們擴大了 OIBDA 並產生了營運資本收益，這反過來又導致我們年初至今的營運現金流量顯著增加。我們對維持 OIBDA 第四季成長並實現轉型目標的能力仍然充滿信心。這樣，我就把電話轉給格雷格。

Thank you. So I'm pleased to say we're on track with Athens, and you can see some of the tangible results in the numbers today. OIBDA grew for the first time, since the second quarter of '21. And we moderated the revenue decline from the first half of '23. We saw meaningful growth in cash flow year-over-year, largely due to higher earnings and working capital benefits. Qurate continued to reduce debt, and lowered its revolver balance by $435 million. And we retired or exchange the remaining 1.75% exchangeable debentures during the quarter or right after quarter end.

謝謝。所以我很高興地說我們與雅典的合作進展順利，您可以在今天的數字中看到一些實際的成果。 OIBDA 自 21 年第二季以來首次成長。自 23 年上半年以來，我們減緩了收入下降的趨勢。我們看到現金流較去年同期顯著成長，這主要是由於收入和營運資本效益的提高。 Qurate 繼續減少債務，並將其循環餘額減少了 4.35 億美元。我們在本季或季度結束後註銷或交換了剩餘的 1.75% 可交換債券。

We continue to assess incremental opportunities to improve the balance sheet, and you should expect in the near term, we will devote free cash flow to debt repayment. We look forward to seeing many of you at our Annual Investor Day on Thursday, November 9, in New York, additional information is available on our website, John Malone and I will be hosting our annual Q&A session alongside management teams. If you would like to submit questions in advance, you can e-mail investorday@libertymedia.com. And with that, operator, we'll open the line for questions.

我們將繼續評估改善資產負債表的增量機會，您應該預期在短期內，我們將把自由現金流用於償還債務。我們期待在 11 月 9 日星期四在紐約舉行的年度投資者日見到你們，更多資訊可在我們的網站上找到，約翰·馬龍和我將與管理團隊一起主持我們的年度問答會議。如果您想提前提交問題，可以發送電子郵件至investorday@libertymedia.com。接線員，接下來我們將開通提問專線。

Thank you. We will now be conducting a question-and-answer session. (Operator Instructions) The first question comes from the line of Jason Haas with Bank of America.

謝謝。我們現在將進行問答環節。 （操作員說明） 第一個問題來自美國銀行的 Jason Haas 線路。

So it's good to hear that you're starting to see some signs of stability in the customer count. I was curious, if you could talk about what you've seen from spending behavior from your newer customers as they've entered into the ecosystem, are you seeing them behave similarly to prior cohorts? Are you seeing a good chunk of those sort of graduate up into your best customers.

因此，很高興聽到您開始看到客戶數量出現一些穩定的跡象。我很好奇，如果您能談談您從新客戶進入生態系統後的消費行為中看到的情況，您是否發現他們的行為與之前的群體相似？您是否看到其中很大一部分人最終成為您最好的客戶？

Yes. Thank you, Jason. I appreciate the question. So new customers, as I mentioned, it was the first growth of new customers, really since the pandemic. We tend to look -- we find the best correlation for future behavior to be repeat purchase behavior. I would say so far, we've been encouraged by the repeat purchase behavior, all of the data we have suggests that they're going to graduate into being better and better individually best customers at about the same rate as some of our historical trends. What we've learned through the pandemic, though, is that not all customers behave the same.

是的。謝謝你，傑森。我很欣賞這個問題。正如我所提到的，新客戶是自大流行以來新客戶的首次成長。我們傾向於尋找——我們發現未來行為的最佳相關性是重複購買行為。我想說，到目前為止，我們對重複購買行為感到鼓舞，我們擁有的所有數據都表明，他們將逐漸成為越來越好的個人最佳客戶，其速度與我們的一些歷史趨勢大致相同。然而，我們從這場大流行中學到的是，並非所有客戶的行為都是一樣的。

So we try to measure different time periods to predict behavior. And like I said, what we've seen so far suggests that this crop of customers is a relatively stable and high-quality crop of customer. So we're both -- we're very encouraged both by the growth of new customers, the continued attractiveness of the platform. We think we're finding -- continuing to find new tools that will be attractive to new and different types of customers within our core customer target groups and we feel good there. I would say, in addition to new customers, we also feel really good about the performance of our best customer group. Keep in mind, best customers, which we define as in QVC as customers that buy over 20 times a year.

因此，我們嘗試測量不同的時間段來預測行為。正如我所說，到目前為止我們所看到的情況表明，這群客戶是相對穩定且高品質的客戶。因此，我們都對新客戶的成長和平台的持續吸引力感到非常鼓舞。我們認為我們正在繼續尋找新的工具，這些工具將對我們的核心客戶目標群體中的新的和不同類型的客戶有吸引力，我們對此感覺良好。我想說，除了新客戶之外，我們也對我們最好的客戶群的表現感到非常滿意。請記住，最好的客戶，我們在 QVC 中將其定義為每年購買次數超過 20 次的客戶。

They make up about 18% of the account and 75% of the sales. So even though refreshing the product file with new customers is important to the count, the best customers tend to be the most important to the overall performance of the business. And when you look at QVC on a last 12-month trailing basis, we were up 5% -- we were up 9% year-over-year on a 12-month basis in Q3. We had the highest average spend for any quarter in 2023 in Q3.

他們約佔帳戶的 18% 和銷售額的 75%。因此，儘管更新新客戶的產品文件對數數很重要，但最好的客戶往往對企業的整體績效最重要。當你看看 QVC 過去 12 個月的追蹤數據時，我們成長了 5%——在第三季的 12 個月基礎上，我們比去年同期成長了 9%。第三季的平均支出是 2023 年所有季度中最高的。

And so our best customers are just continuing to really show up for us. And the rate of decline for those customers are substantially under the rate of decline for the overall count and our retention of those best customers are still in the 90s, which I think is fair to say world-class across world-class across retail. So both on the new win for bringing new customers into the platform, but also our most loyal and best customers, who drive an awful lot of our results, we feel good about the results of the third quarter.

因此，我們最好的客戶將繼續為我們服務。這些客戶的下降率大大低於總體數量的下降率，而我們對這些最佳客戶的保留率仍處於 90 年代，我認為可以公平地說，零售業的世界級水平。因此，無論是為平台帶來新客戶的新勝利，還是我們最忠誠和最好的客戶，他們為我們的業績帶來了巨大的推動力，我們對第三季的業績感到滿意。

It's great to hear. And then as a follow-up, I'm curious if you could talk about what you saw in terms of the cadence through the quarter. We've had a number of companies calling out some macro-related headwinds. So I'm curious if that's weighed on top-line revenue at all, partially offsetting some of the success you've had with your initiatives.

很高興聽到。作為後續行動，我很好奇您是否可以談談您在本季度的節奏方面所看到的情況。許多公司都指出了一些與宏觀相關的不利因素。因此，我很好奇這是否會影響總收入，部分抵消您的舉措所取得的一些成功。

Yes. It's a fair question. I would say we definitely saw fluidity through the quarter. But certainly, in terms of bottom line results, we saw a pretty good consistency through the quarter. We were a little bit better in July and September than we were in August. But a pretty solid quarter as we went through the quarter. And we saw some different -- we saw some different revenue trends across the businesses. I'd say a little bit of deceleration at QxH but some acceleration and the international businesses as we went through the quarter. But none of that looked none of that looked very sticky. So I'd call it a pretty even quarter as we went through the quarter.

是的。這是一個公平的問題。我想說，我們確實看到了整個季度的流動性。但當然，就底線結果而言，我們在整個季度看到了相當好的一致性。七月和九月的情況比八月好。但當我們經歷這個季度時，這是一個相當穩定的季度。我們看到了一些不同的東西——我們看到了各個企業的一些不同的收入趨勢。我想說的是，QxH 的業務有所放緩，但在整個季度中，國際業務有所加速。但這些看起來都不是很黏。因此，當我們經歷這個季度時，我認為這是一個相當均勻的季度。

Next question comes from the line of William Reuter with Bank of America.

下一個問題來自 William Reuter 與美國銀行的對話。

This is Rob Rigby on for Bill. So just a question around the category trends. You guys had some pretty strong sales in some of your more discretionary categories, but then you saw softness in beauty sales, which had actually been performing okay on an overall market perspective. So can you just kind of discuss like the category trends and what you're seeing?

這是為比爾發言的羅布·里格比。這只是一個關於品類趨勢的問題。你們在一些較為可自由支配的類別中取得了相當強勁的銷售，但隨後你們看到了美容產品銷售的疲軟，從整體市場角度來看，美容產品的銷售實際上表現良好。那麼您能否討論一下品類趨勢以及您所看到的情況？

Yes. So Bill went through some of the dynamics. Do you want to retrace category trends real quick, a bit bill, and then I'll give some more color over the top.

是的。所以比爾經歷了一些動態。你想快速回顧一下品類趨勢嗎？有點帳單，然後我會在上面提供更多的顏色。

Yes. And just kind of refresh your memory, and if you look at even on our slide deck, right? So home, we saw a little bit of a turnaround in performance there relative to the prior quarters, right? We were up 2% in home. I'll talk to QxH, right, just to kind of normalize a bit. Electronics, that's continuing to be soft. But if you look, we've seen that trend pretty much all year long, right? We will start to reduce air time and have been reducing airtime kind of throughout. And so that's been a softening kind of category for us throughout the year. Apparel was down. Beauty was down 7%. We've seen a little bit of volatility in that category.

是的。只是刷新你的記憶，如果你看看我們的幻燈片，對嗎？那麼在國內，我們看到相對於前幾季的業績出現了一些好轉，對吧？我們主場上漲了 2%。我會和 QxH 談談，對吧，只是為了稍微正常化一點。電子產品持續疲軟。但如果你仔細觀察，我們幾乎全年都看到這種趨勢，對吧？我們將開始減少播出時間，並且自始至終都在減少播出時間。因此，這一類別對我們來說全年都是軟化的。服裝下降了。美妝下降了 7%。我們看到該類別存在一些波動。

We were up in Q2, but down in Q3 and then saw strength within accessories and jewelry. So I think -- I mean I'll let David get into some of the kind of key highlights there. You did see some of this driven really strong TSV and TS performance at both QVC and HSN. I think and new item introduction in both of those businesses or probably the largest driver, when you look at a period-over-period basis. But relatively consistent across men, I think the only thing you're seeing is a big outlay right now. In terms of the business from just being kind of on an average of that down 3 to electronics, right, which continues to be soft for us.

我們在第二季度有所上升，但在第三季度有所下降，然後看到了配件和珠寶領域的實力。所以我想——我的意思是我會讓大衛談談其中的一些關鍵亮點。您確實在 QVC 和 HSN 上看到了這種驅動的真正強大的 TSV 和 TS 性能。我認為，當你比較不同時期的情況時，這兩個業務中的新產品推出可能是最大的驅動因素。但在男性中相對一致，我認為你現在看到的唯一的事情就是巨額支出。就業務而言，從平均下降 3 到電子產品，對我們來說仍然疲軟。

Yes. I would I agree with everything Bill said. I'd maybe lift the level above category to make some general observations that we've seen cut across categories. I think the first is our customer is still willing to spend even on very expensive items, whether it's a Land Rover electric bike or scooter or a leather jacket or lab grown diamonds they're willing to spend on very high price category items.

是的。我同意比爾所說的一切。我可能會提升類別之上的級別，以做出一些我們所看到的跨類別的一般觀察。我認為第一是我們的客戶仍然願意花在非常昂貴的物品上，無論是路虎電動自行車或踏板車，還是皮夾克或實驗室種植的鑽石，他們都願意花在價格非常高的物品上。

But for things, where they don't perceive urgency. They don't perceive an especially strong value, what may have been more throwaway type purchases. She's keeping the credit card in the pocket or in the purse. So we're having to be really sharp. When we are sharp -- and I think we've gotten sharper on things like our today's special value, we continue to see a response. But some of the lesser sharp value propositions are -- it's harder to get it's harder to get a purchase. So that's been -- I think that shows, what we're seeing in the overall data around consumer sentiment.

但對於他們感覺不到緊迫性的事。他們沒有意識到特別強烈的價值，可能更多的是一次性購買。她把信用卡放在口袋或錢包裡。所以我們必須非常敏銳。當我們敏銳時——我認為我們在諸如今天的特殊價值之類的事情上變得更加敏銳，我們就會繼續看到回應。但一些不太尖銳的價值主張是──獲得更難，購買更難。我認為這表明了我們在圍繞消費者信心的整體數據中看到的情況。

But that's been one of the trends that I would say we've seen. But the other thing we've seen, I think it's related to that trend is that the customer has responded to our special events, and that's true across categories. And so we're leaning into that with things like the Foodie Fest. We went pretty big on Christmas and July at QVC. We went pretty big on the HSN birthday anniversary month. Right now, we're doing a nice push with Dolly Parton, I talked a little bit about. But those are becoming more important in the business to drive performance across categories. And I would say they've also been really critical to some of our more recent success with new customers.

但這是我們已經看到的趨勢之一。但我們看到的另一件事，我認為與這一趨勢相關的是，客戶對我們的特殊活動做出了回應，這在各個類別中都是如此。因此，我們正在透過美食節等活動來解決這個問題。聖誕節和七月，我們在 QVC 舉辦了一場盛大的活動。我們在 HSN 生日週年紀念月舉辦了一場盛大的活動。現在，我們正在與多莉·帕頓（Dolly Parton）進行一次很好的推動，我談到了一些。但這些在業務中對於推動跨類別績效變得越來越重要。我想說，它們對於我們最近在新客戶方面取得的一些成功也非常關鍵。

Okay. Great. And then just one follow-up from us. So you talked about focusing on debt repayment moving forward. And I was just wondering if you could give a little bit more around your thoughts on repurchasing the notes due in 2024 and 2025.

好的。偉大的。然後是我們的一項後續行動。所以你談到了未來重點關注債務償還。我只是想知道您是否可以進一步談談您對回購 2024 年和 2025 年到期票據的想法。

Yes. I think you've seen us take some of those actions already, and you'll see us continue to look at opportunities to take advantage of attractive opportunities in the debt markets, but I'm not going to come out and tell you which ones for buying this week. Thanks.

是的。我認為您已經看到我們已經採取了其中一些行動，並且您會看到我們繼續尋找機會利用債務市場中有吸引力的機會，但我不會出來告訴您哪些行動本週購買。謝謝。

Next question comes from the line of Carla Casella with JPMorgan.

下一個問題來自卡拉·卡塞拉（Carla Casella）與摩根大通的關係。

Just a couple on clarification and follow-up. So on the new customers, you showed in your slides that your new customers are now 4% of the mix of the sales shift. And I know pre -- well, in 2021, that was as high as 7% and then '22, 5%. I'm wondering how much of a -- how important and how much those new customers are funneling into that next basket of existing kind of key more longer-term customers? And how do you -- how should we think about that?

只是一些澄清和後續行動。因此，關於新客戶，您在幻燈片中顯示，您的新客戶現在佔銷售轉變組合的 4%。我知道，在 2021 年，這一比例高達 7%，然後到了 22 年，為 5%。我想知道這些新客戶有多少——有多重要以及有多少流入到下一個現有關鍵的長期客戶籃子中？我們該如何思考這個問題？

Yes, it's a good question. So I don't think we've publicly disclosed this. But we basically know from our historical data how long it takes a new customer to become a best customer? And what percent of new customers eventually become best customers. Because our best customers are such a small percentage of our file, of course, it's a relatively smaller percentage, a relatively small percentage of new that end up being best customers.

是的，這是一個好問題。所以我認為我們沒有公開披露這一點。但我們基本上從歷史數據中知道一個新客戶需要多長時間才能成為最佳客戶？百分之多少的新客戶最終成為最佳客戶。因為我們的最佳客戶只占我們檔案的一小部分，當然，這個比例相對較小，最終成為最佳客戶的新客戶的比例相對較小。

But what we know is that percentage holds relatively consistent. And if we don't have enough just raw count of new that we will not graduate enough best customers down the line, say, 12, 18 months from the time they walk into the door. So it's not new, very rarely is a driver of in-period results. They're usually a driver of results, 12 to 18 months out once their buying behavior becomes a [eventual] enough for them to be a substantial customer. The other reason they tend not to be as much a driver of present results is we tend to get new customers coming in into lower-margin categories and then they graduate out to higher margin categories. So they might come in on electronics and eventually graduate to being a very good batching customer, where we have better margins. So that's a little bit about how we think about the progress of new over time.

但我們知道這個百分比保持相對穩定。如果我們沒有足夠的新客戶的原始數量，那麼我們就無法培養出足夠多的最佳客戶，例如，從他們走進大門後的 12、18 個月。因此，這並不是什麼新鮮事，也很少成為期內業績的驅動因素。他們通常是結果的推動者，一旦他們的購買行為[最終]足以讓他們成為重要客戶，12 到 18 個月後他們就會這麼做。它們往往不會成為當前業績的驅動因素的另一個原因是，我們傾向於讓新客戶進入利潤率較低的類別，然後他們逐漸轉向利潤率較高的類別。因此，他們可能會涉足電子產品領域，並最終成為一個非常好的大量客戶，我們在那裡有更好的利潤。這就是我們如何看待新事物隨著時間的推移而取得的進展。

Part of that, Carl, I think also it speaks to just the strength of the existing customer base. We talked about kind of the average spend per customer there and how important that core customer base is to us. And that's why you're seeing such a large index, when you're looking at this quarter alone?

卡爾，我認為這也說明了現有客戶群的實力。我們討論了每位客戶的平均支出以及核心客戶群對我們的重要性。這就是為什麼當您僅查看本季度時會看到如此大的指數？

Okay. Great. And then -- so are we back to about the same level of like your typical new customers as a percentage of the mix from pre pandemic? I only have the numbers from '21 on.

好的。偉大的。然後，我們是否回到了與典型新客戶在大流行前的比例相同的水平？我只有21年以來的數字。

I would have to take a look at that. I don't have it right in front of me. We can get back to you on that. I think we're probably we're probably a little bit lighter on a percentage basis of new in terms of the total customer file, but getting back to what the mix was pre-pandemic, but we can get back to you with specific numbers.

我得看看那個。我面前沒有它。我們可以就此回覆您。我認為，就總客戶檔案而言，我們可能會以新的百分比為基礎，但回到大流行前的組合，但我們可以用具體數字回覆您。

Great. And then just a couple of other questions. One on the product margin favorability. We love seeing that it helps gross margins 180 basis points this quarter. I'm wondering, seasonally, should we think about a similar improvement in fourth quarter or just fourth quarter being more promotional across the industry, should we see less gains in the fourth quarter?

偉大的。然後還有其他幾個問題。一是對產品毛利的好感度。我們很高興看到它使本季的毛利率提高了 180 個基點。我想知道，從季節性角度來看，我們是否應該考慮第四季度的類似改善，或者只是第四季度整個行業的促銷力度更大，我們是否應該看到第四季度的收益減少？

I think we feel really good about kind of where we're going to be from product margins and overall gross margins in the fourth quarter. When you look -- I mean, there's a couple of elements to that, right? One, we had -- we were highly promotional as we were clearing inventory last year. And so you kind of deflated margins associated with that. We were still working through high detention (inaudible) costs, high ocean freight rates. And so as you've seen those things come down from a fulfillment perspective, we still feel really good, even though there's going to be like-for-like promotional activity in the quarter. We still feel really good about kind of the trajectory of where gross margin is at relative to where we were this year and should continue to see kind of year-over-year build there.

我認為我們對第四季度的產品利潤率和整體毛利率感到非常滿意。當你看時——我的意思是，有幾個要素，對吧？第一，去年我們在清理庫存時進行了大力促銷。因此，與此相關的利潤率有所下降。我們仍在努力克服高昂的滯留（聽不清楚）成本和高海運費。因此，當您從履行的角度看到這些事情時，我們仍然感覺非常好，儘管本季將會有類似的促銷活動。我們仍然對毛利率相對於今年的水平的軌跡感到非常滿意，並且應該會繼續看到毛利率的同比增長。

Okay. That's great. So year-over-year, but probably not quarter-over-quarter. Is that for most retail, should I say?

好的。那太棒了。與去年同期相比，但可能不是與季度相比。我應該說這對大多數零售業來說都是這樣嗎？

I think depending on -- because of last year being anomaly, I think you're looking at pretty close there.

我認為這取決於——由於去年的異常情況，我認為你正在觀察非常接近的情況。

And then one last question. The cost reductions, a lot of it seems to be you're taking out the excess freight. But I'm wondering just the sustainability of them. And then can you scale these even, if we don't see tremendous revenue gains, but just the stability, can you -- is there other further cost reduction opportunities?

最後一個問題。成本的降低，很大一部分似乎是你把多餘的運費去掉了。但我想知道它們的可持續性。然後，如果我們沒有看到巨大的收入成長，而只是看到穩定性，那麼您是否可以擴大這些規模，是否還有其他進一步降低成本的機會？

Bob is going to let me take that one, right? I think, when you look at -- I mean when you look at kind of where we are on cost, we feel really good about the progress today, right? It took some time to get kind of some of this through the system, right? When you look at the supply chain cost of kind of [retention to mirrors] ocean freight, all that stuff, right, kind of coming down to get to what we would call a normalized level. When you look at everything else in terms of a cost to serve, I mean we're -- part of Athens is kind of continuous improvement and we look at lowering our cost per unit from a fulfillment perspective. How do we think about customer acquisition costs. We feel good about the ability to continue to maintain kind of strong OIBDA margin growth. We know that it's a challenged top line environment, and that's a key focus for us, but that was a lot of the work that we've been doing and continue to do with Athens.

鮑伯會讓我拿那個，對嗎？我認為，當你看到——我的意思是，當你看到我們在成本方面的情況時，我們對今天的進展感到非常滿意，對吧？透過系統獲得其中一些內容需要一些時間，對嗎？當你觀察[保留鏡子]海運的供應鏈成本時，所有這些東西，對，都下降到我們所說的標準化水平。當你從服務成本的角度來看待其他一切時，我的意思是，我們雅典的一部分是持續改進，我們從履行的角度考慮降低單位成本。我們如何考慮客戶獲取成本。我們對繼續保持 OIBDA 利潤率強勁成長的能力感到滿意。我們知道這是一個充滿挑戰的頂線環境，這是我們關注的重點，但這是我們一直在並將繼續與雅典一起做的大量工作。

I'd say a couple of things. One, some of the cost work that we're doing in some of the international markets, you haven't had an opportunity to really see those show up yet, because they -- they're layered in more as sort of 2024 actions. And I'd say there are discrete places, where because of the delay, some of the work we've done hasn't quite shown up in the numbers. And so that's a bit of a tailwind. The other thing I'd say is a lot of our work is not just cost reduction. I think of it more as efficiency increases.

我想說幾件事。一，我們在一些國際市場所做的一些成本工作，你還沒有機會真正看到這些工作，因為它們更多地體現在 2024 年的行動中。我想說的是，在一些離散的地方，由於延誤，我們所做的一些工作尚未完全體現在數字上。所以這有點順風順水。我想說的另一件事是我們的許多工作不僅僅是降低成本。隨著效率的提高，我會更考慮這一點。

And so I think there are a number of places in the business where we can continue to get more efficient. And in fact, we have a number of places that we are working on now, where we can get more efficient. And then finally, we do have some pretty exceptional onetime costs that have been headwinds this year that are not there next year. We have Athens transformation costs that include some things like third-party and consulting fees that don't repeat. We had the sale of leaseback rents that will cycle next year. And so we do have both some opportunities to continue leaning into efficiency. And some cost type actions that haven't shown up in the numbers yet. And we have some tailwinds from costs that will fall out as we go into 2024.

因此，我認為在業務中有很多地方我們可以繼續提高效率。事實上，我們現在正在許多地方開展工作，可以提高效率。最後，我們確實有一些非常特殊的一次性成本，這些成本今年一直是不利因素，但明年就不會出現了。我們有雅典轉型成本，其中包括一些不重複的第三方費用和諮詢費用。我們出售了將於明年循環的回租租金。因此，我們確實有一些機會繼續提高效率。還有一些成本類型的行動尚未顯示在數字中。進入 2024 年，成本帶來的一些推動因素將會消失。

Next question comes from the line of Karru Martinson with Jefferies.

下一個問題來自卡魯·馬丁森（Karru Martinson）和杰弗里斯（Jefferies）的線路。

Just following up on Carla's margin question. So if I heard it correctly, Parsing come through that we'll see that continued improvement we'll see product margin, we'll see freight rate or fulfillment costs coming down, but just not at the same pace as that we saw in the third quarter. Is that the correct way to translate that?

只是跟進卡拉的保證金問題。因此，如果我沒聽錯的話，解析後我們會看到產品利潤率持續改善，我們會看到運費或履行成本下降，但速度與我們在第三季。這是正確的翻譯方法嗎？

I mean, I think over time -- I mean, third quarter, obviously, on fulfillment piece, there was a lot we worked through there and a lot on a year-over-year basis. We still feel kind of that we've still got room to go, especially on the balance of the year, right? And then as you get into kind of this time next year, hopefully, we've kind of normalized at a lower kind of cost per unit basis. So we feel good about the kind of Q3 rolling into Q4. And then obviously, over time, that's going to work its way through.

我的意思是，我認為隨著時間的推移 - 我的意思是，顯然，在第三季度，在履行方面，我們在那裡做了很多工作，而且與去年同期相比也做了很多工作。我們仍然覺得我們還有空間，尤其是在今年剩下的時間裡，對吧？然後，當你進入明年的這個時候，希望我們能夠以較低的單位成本正常化。因此，我們對第三季進入第四季的情況感到滿意。顯然，隨著時間的推移，這一切都會得到解決。

Okay. And just on the customer count here, when I was taking my notes you had talked about that the rate of decline had moderated and you've seen the biggest turn from the low end of your customer base, where you're talking about your lower-end customers? Or are you talking to folks, who occasionally shop? And I guess in that line, what do you see from your lower-income customers these days?

好的。就這裡的客戶數量而言，當我記筆記時，您談到下降速度已經放緩，並且您已經看到來自低端客戶群的最大轉變，您正在談論您的較低客戶群終端客戶？或者你正在和那些偶爾購物的人交談嗎？我想在這方面，您現在從低收入客戶身上看到了什麼？

Yes. So when we said we're seeing the biggest churn from the lower end of our customer file, we were talking about customer frequency. So it's the customers, who purchase the least frequently, where we see the highest churn. In terms of customer demographic by income, I'd say generally, one, keep in mind, we have a higher-than-average income customer, who is even more different than the average, when it comes to wealth because of where they tend to be at the stage in their life when they come into our platform.

是的。因此，當我們說我們看到客戶檔案低端的最大流失時，我們談論的是客戶頻率。因此，我們發現購買頻率最低的客戶流失率最高。就按收入劃分的客戶人口統計而言，我通常會說，一，請記住，我們有一個高於平均收入的客戶，在財富方面，他們與平均水平的差異更大，因為他們傾向於當當他們進入我們的平台時，他們正處於人生的階段。

So that customer is a bit insulated -- and they've also been a little bit insulated by some things like student loan repayments, where they're affected in a number of ways, sometimes because they're helping kids sometimes because they're younger and still have certain student loans are probably less affected than the average than the average customer. So we see some of the benefits of the installation from our core customer and their performance. In some of the less wealthy customers we definitely see more impact of the economy.

因此，該客戶有點孤立——而且他們也受到學生貸款償還等一些事情的影響，他們在很多方面受到影響，有時是因為他們在幫助孩子，有時是因為他們年齡較小且仍擁有一定學生貸款的普通客戶受到的影響可能比一般客戶小。因此，我們從我們的核心客戶及其性能中看到了安裝的一些好處。在一些不太富裕的客戶中，我們肯定會看到經濟的更大影響。

And just a point of clarification. Paying down the revolver here, that will free that up. That's fungible. You can use that to redeem the launch, correct?

只是澄清一點。在這裡付清左輪手槍的錢，就可以釋放它。這是可替代的。你可以用它來兌換啟動，對嗎？

I think it's fair -- it's Ben Oren. I think it's fair to say that the 2024 and '25 notes will be dealt with cash on hand and revolver over time I'm not going to talk about what the pace of that is, but that's probably the best expectation.

我認為這是公平的——這是本·奧倫。我認為可以公平地說，隨著時間的推移，2024 年和 25 年紙幣將處理手頭現金和左輪手槍，我不會談論其速度，但這可能是最好的預期。

The last question comes from the line of Hale Holden with Barclays.

最後一個問題來自黑爾·霍頓（Hale Holden）與巴克萊銀行（Barclays）的對話。

I just had 2 questions. It was -- David, it was great to hear you throw that marker out for flat revenue growth in 2024, when you set that earlier this year, at least my impression is things have slowed down a little bit. So maybe you could talk about puts and takes on how you keep that flat despite maybe a slower macro environment.

我只有兩個問題。大衛，很高興聽到你把 2024 年收入增長持平的標誌扔掉，當你今年早些時候設定這一目標時，至少我的印像是事情已經放緩了一點。因此，也許您可以談談如何在宏觀環境放緩的情況下保持平穩。

Yes. Thank you for the question. I'd say a couple of things. I don't think I have said flat revenue growth for 2024. I think I said stable revenue growth through 2024. The way we think about stable is plus or minus a few points on flat, and so I would say we got the stability in Q3 on the top line. The reason why that's important is we're doing a lot of cost and margin work and if you see the type of declines in revenue we had in, say, 2022, it's hard to do enough of that work for it to show up on the bottom line.

是的。感謝你的提問。我想說幾件事。我認為我沒有說過2024 年收入成長持平。我想我說過2024 年收入成長穩定。我們考慮穩定的方式是在持平的基礎上加上或減去幾個點，所以我想說我們在2024年實現了穩定Q3 在頂行。這很重要的原因是我們正在做大量的成本和利潤工作，如果你看到我們在 2022 年的收入下降類型，那麼很難做足夠的工作來將其顯示在底線。

I think given our Project Athens transformation in the way it's shaped as long as we have relative stability on the top line, we should still be able to achieve our free cash flow and OIBDA growth objectives, which we continue to have -- continue to have real confidence in.

我認為，考慮到我們雅典計畫的轉型方式，只要我們的營收相對穩定，我們仍然應該能夠實現我們的自由現金流和 OIBDA 成長目標，我們將繼續實現這些目標。真正的信心。

I would say we've designed this from the beginning to be able to do well in a wide variety of macro environments. We don't need strong growth in our most relevant categories to be able to deliver. In some ways, the macro environment in Q3 wasn't great. We think on a sales basis, we grew better than the discretionary general merchandise data suggests that the categories we play in grew. So we haven't had the benefit of a great macro environment.

我想說，我們從一開始就設計了這個，以便能夠在各種宏觀環境中表現良好。我們不需要在最相關的類別中實現強勁成長即可實現這一目標。從某些方面來說，第三季的宏觀環境並不好。我們認為，在銷售基礎上，我們的成長比可自由支配的一般商品數據顯示我們所從事的類別的成長更好。所以我們沒有享受到良好的宏觀環境的好處。

So far and looking into Q4 and first half of next year, we think we can deliver in anything that's foreseeable, if we end up in a deep recession, obviously, that's a different situation. But I think we can continue to execute and have good free cash flow and OIBDA performance and a variety of macro environments. We are not promising this on a substantial improvement, certainly in the overall macro environment.

到目前為止，展望第四季和明年上半年，我們認為我們可以實現任何可預見的目標，如果我們最終陷入嚴重衰退，顯然，情況會有所不同。但我認為我們可以繼續執行並擁有良好的自由現金流和 OIBDA 績效以及各種宏觀環境。我們並不承諾會出現實質改善，尤其是在整體宏觀環境中。

Great. And then I think one of the -- I'd have to check my notes, but one of the other numbers you gave was a 16-minute improvement in viewership on a daily basis. And I was wondering, if you could help give us some context on where average length of viewership was versus kind of historical norms because that seems like a really strong improvement metric?

偉大的。然後我想其中一個——我必須檢查我的筆記，但你給出的其他數字之一是每天的收視率提高了 16 分鐘。我想知道，您是否可以幫助我們了解平均收視時間與歷史規範的關係，因為這似乎是一個非常強大的改造指標？

Yes, it was. It was 15% improvement in viewership for the quarter. We think that has a lot to do with some of our -- we think that has a lot to do with some of our programming. We think we're bringing people -- we think we're bringing people into a lot of the special events. I walked through some of them in the context of our script. And so we think it also just shows stability in the file. We think it shows a lot of stability and our ability to continue to bring people back.

是的。本季收視率提高了 15%。我們認為這與我們的一些程式設計有很大關係。我們認為我們正在帶人們參加很多特別活動。我在我們的腳本中詳細介紹了其中的一些內容。所以我們認為它也只是顯示了檔案的穩定性。我們認為這顯示了很大的穩定性以及我們繼續讓人們回來的能力。

And keep in mind that also that's a linear channel measurement. And so that's not including some of the growth that we're having in our digital platforms. And so we feel very good about being able to continue increasing viewership.

請記住，這也是線性通道測量。因此，這還不包括我們數位平台的一些成長。因此，我們對能夠繼續增加收視率感到非常高興。

All right. Thank you for your attendance and interest in today's earnings announcement. We look forward to, as we said, to seeing some of you next week in New York. And with that, operator, I think we'll close the floor.

好的。感謝您出席並關註今天的收益公告。正如我們所說，我們期待下週在紐約見到你們中的一些人。就這樣，操作員，我想我們將關閉發言權。

Thank you. This concludes today's teleconference. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Thank you for your participation.

謝謝。今天的電話會議到此結束。此時您可以斷開線路。感謝您的參與。