Conferencia de resultados del T2 del año fiscal 2026 de Rent the Runway (RENT): ingresos récord y expansión del margen

Rent the Runway (NASDAQ: RENT) registró ingresos récord en el segundo trimestre fiscal de 2026 y una expansión sustancial del margen, mientras que los suscriptores activos finales disminuyeron. La empresa reafirmó sus previsiones de crecimiento de ingresos y de EBITDA ajustado para todo el ejercicio y anunció la transición de su CEO.

Puntos clave

• Los ingresos netos alcanzaron un récord histórico para la empresa de 97,7 millones de dólares, aumentando un 20,8% interanual y un 8,7% secuencialmente.
• El margen bruto se amplió 609 puntos básicos hasta el 36,1%, respaldado por menores costes de productos de alquiler en relación con los ingresos y el apalancamiento operativo en logística.
• El EBITDA ajustado aumentó a 12,6 millones de dólares, o el 12,9% de los ingresos, frente a los 3,6 millones de dólares, o el 4,4%, del mismo periodo del año anterior.
• Los suscriptores activos finales disminuyeron un 3,8% interanual hasta los 140.826, lo que refleja una mayor actividad de pausa y menos captaciones de clientes tras la menor actividad promocional.
• La directiva reiteró un crecimiento de los ingresos de dos dígitos y un margen de EBITDA ajustado del 4% al 7% para el ejercicio fiscal 2026.
• Paige Thomas pasará a ser CEO, presidenta y miembro del Consejo a partir del 14 de septiembre. La CEO interina, Teri Bariquit, pasará a ser presidenta no ejecutiva.

Datos financieros principales

Rendimiento comercial y operativo

El crecimiento de los ingresos se vio beneficiado por los aumentos de los precios de suscripción introducidos el 1 de agosto de 2025, el incremento de las reservas adicionales y una mayor actividad de reventa. Los menores ingresos por reservas anticipadas compensaron parcialmente el crecimiento de los ingresos por alquiler.

Los costes de producto y logística proporcionaron un apalancamiento operativo significativo. La depreciación del producto de alquiler y los costes de ingresos compartidos disminuyeron 240 puntos básicos como porcentaje de los ingresos, mientras que los gastos de logística disminuyeron 370 puntos básicos. La empresa también mantuvo los niveles de inversión interanuales en iniciativas clave de tecnología y marketing al tiempo que redujo los gastos generales y administrativos.

Rent the Runway está concentrando recursos en el alquiler y la reventa. Ha pausado su iniciativa de marketplace, así como la publicidad y monetización en el sitio web, y no está buscando nuevos socios B2B de limpieza en seco. Se seguirá prestando servicio a los socios B2B existentes.

La empresa amplió determinadas categorías de mercancía e incorporó marcas como La Ligne y Jenni Kayne. Las túnicas y salidas de playa pasaron de 12 a 25 marcas asociadas, y la categoría creció un 75% interanual.

Las iniciativas de descubrimiento digital incluyeron la generación de conjuntos, avatares y probadores virtuales. La generación de conjuntos registró un 35% de interacción en la aplicación. Durante la prueba piloto, los clientes con acceso a la función añadieron artículos a sus bolsas un 12% más a menudo, mientras que el 77% abrió otro artículo dentro del look recomendado.

La empresa obtuvo un préstamo a plazo de 10 millones de dólares y anunció planes para una oferta de derechos de suscripción de 15 millones de dólares, respaldada por el grupo de inversores que lideró su refinanciación en 2025. La directiva afirmó que el capital adicional respaldaría la liquidez y los planes operativos.

Previsiones de la directiva

La directiva aumentó la inversión planificada en productos de alquiler para respaldar los eventos de otoño y los lanzamientos de nuevos productos. La empresa también prevé que los ingresos por reventa y los pedidos de reservas crezcan durante el segundo semestre, con las reservas respaldadas por una inversión adicional en inventario.

Riesgos y aspectos a vigilar

• Los suscriptores activos finales disminuyeron debido al aumento de las tasas de pausa de los clientes y a la caída en la captación de suscriptores tras la menor actividad promocional.
• Se espera que el crecimiento de los ingresos del tercer trimestre fiscal se ralentice a medida que la empresa se compare con el aumento de precio de suscripción del año anterior.
• La directiva prevé un margen de EBITDA ajustado negativo en el tercer trimestre fiscal debido principalmente a las pausas estacionales de las suscripciones y a mayores costes derivados de recibir más inventario bajo acuerdos de ingresos compartidos.
• Los costes de transporte y procesamiento en almacén aumentaron, compensando parcialmente el apalancamiento logístico obtenido por unos mayores ingresos por pedido.
• La empresa elevó su plan de inversión en productos de alquiler, aumentando el capital asignado a inventario en comparación con sus previsiones anteriores.

Transcripción completa de la conferencia de resultados

Transcripción completa de la conferencia de resultados

Comentarios de la dirección

Operator

Welcome to Rent the Runway's Second Quarter 2026 Earnings Results Conference Call. As a reminder, this call was recorded.

I would now like to turn the call over to Rent the Runway's Chief Legal and Administrative Officer, Cara Schembri. Thank you, Cara. You may begin.

Cara Schembri

Hello, everyone, and thanks for dialing in today.

We would like to remind you that this call will include forward-looking statements. These statements include guidance and underlying assumptions for the third fiscal quarter of 2026 and the fiscal year 2026, and statements regarding our business strategies and initiatives, inventory plans, execution and progress against our goals, and leadership transition. These statements are subject to various risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause our actual results to differ materially. These risks, uncertainties and assumptions are detailed in today's press release and our Form 10-Q. We have no obligation to update any forward-looking statements or information except as required by law.

During this call, we will also reference certain non-GAAP financial information. The presentation of this non-GAAP financial information is not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for financial information presented in accordance with GAAP. Reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP measures can be found in our press release and in our SEC filings.

And with that, I'll turn it over to Teri Bariquit, our Interim CEO.

Teri Bariquit

Thank you, Cara, and thank you all for joining today. Before we turn to the quarter, I want to share an important update on our leadership. This morning, we announced that Paige Thomas has been appointed as Rent the Runway's Chief Executive Officer, President and a Member of our Board of Directors effective September 14.

Paige brings 30 years of retail leadership experience with a track record of driving growth at premium and off-price brands alike. She joined Rent the Runway in June of 2026 as our Chief Commercial Officer, after serving as Chief Merchant and Product Innovation Officer at Signet Jewelers and as President and CEO of Saks OFF 5TH Avenue. Earlier, she spent more than a decade at Nordstrom, including 5 years leading Nordstrom Rack.

The bar we set for this role was high and it was specific, someone who understands the premium customer and fashion brands she loves, someone who has operated at scale, and someone who will lead and accelerate the strategy this team is already executing. That is Paige.

With Paige stepping in as our permanent CEO, I will move into the role of Non-Executive Chair of our Board also effective September 14. Paige and I will work closely together as we transition into our new roles, ensuring the strategy and momentum we've built continues.

I also want to thank Dhiren Fonseca for his service as Executive Chairman through this period of transition. He's been a steady partner to me and to the Board, and the company is better for it.

Now to the business. Through all of this change, our foundation holds. It starts with the customer at the center and the core rental business she comes to us for. Over the past few months, we've listened to her feedback, analyzed the data and evaluated how we work. As a result, we've refined how we serve her and we're clearer than ever on our strategy.

Rent the Runway is a premium fashion service platform. We exist to give her access to premium fashion, whether she is renting or buying, guided by styling intelligence that helps her find and wear what fits her life. And we give brands and partners exposure to highly-valued, highly-engaged customers.

Our strategy is supported by 3 operating objectives: total customer growth, profit expansion and operational excellence.

First, total customer growth is built on being a fashion authority and delivering an experience she trusts. In practice, that means the best merchandise offer, from everyday workwear to the aspirational brands she asks for by name, realized through strong brand partnerships. And it means an even more seamless experience, availability, discovery and access to product on her terms. She subscribes to expand her closet for everyday wear; she reserves for the moments that matter most in her life; and increasingly, she wants to buy from us. She experiences all of it as one relationship with one company, and we are building the business to match.

Second, margin expansion is about bringing more discipline to how we drive profitable revenue. That includes how we use pricing and promotions and how we manage inventory to turn faster and bring the greatest return on our largest investment: the product itself.

Third, operational excellence is about disciplined execution, delivering the plan we set and the promise she is paying us for. This is what separates the retailers that last from the ones that do not. It is the garment arriving clean, on time and in the condition she expects every single time across the hundreds of thousands of items moving through our operations. We hold ourselves to that standard on every order.

Now to the quarter. Our customers' feedback has been consistent, and we aim to always deliver on the promise she comes to us for: the right merchandise, easy to find, in stock when she needs it and in a condition she expects. So we are concentrating our resources toward improving our execution on rental and selling. That focus means we have paused select pilots that do not directly serve those priorities today.

First, we paused marketplace, and we believe that it can be meaningful in our future once the experience is fully integrated. We paused on-site advertising and monetization to prioritize the premium experience. And we are not pursuing new B2B dry cleaning partners, though we will continue to serve the ones we have. These are choices about focus and sequencing. And by concentrating our resources, we expect to improve execution and results.

For the second quarter, we delivered $98 million in revenue, ahead of the range we communicated in June. We also delivered meaningful margin improvement as we focused on operational efficiencies and alternative inventory models. Dave will take you through the financials in more detail shortly.

Total customer growth depends on fashion authority, brand trust and a seamless customer experience. To strengthen our fashion authority in the quarter, we introduced new brands and went deeper into the categories she requests most. To deliver a relevant summer offer, for example, we expanded beach cover-ups from 12 brand partners to 25, growing the category 75% over last year. She continues to respond to newness, with recent additions like La Ligne, Jenni Kayne, alongside refreshed prints from Marimekko, all delivering above-average utilization.

Looking to fall, she will experience a diverse assortment, including new brands and new collaborations weighted more heavily than last year toward the brands and categories she requests most, whether she's heading into the office, working from home or getting ready for a fall wedding.

She has told us how much the reserve experience matters. It's where she comes to us for the key moments in her life. It carries the highest satisfaction scores. And we are investing in it, including category expansion. We will share more on those results at the next call. The goal is simple: more of what she wants with even more newness throughout the season.

At the start of 2026, we said we would deliver features to improve her discovery experience, and we have been delivering. In May, we piloted outfits generation. And by the end of June, it was live for every customer. She no longer has to imagine what to wear together; we show her the complete look. Engagement with this feature on our app is running at 35%, ahead of our expectations. And it is changing how she engages with us. During the pilot, customers with the outfit experience added to their bags 12% more often than those without it, and 77% of the time she opened another item within the look.

In August, we rolled out avatars within the outfit experience so that she can see recommended looks on a range of figures. And we began piloting virtual try-ons so that she can see how a specific item will look before she rents or buys. Over the past 5 months, we've launched personalized carousels, updated imagery, outfits generation and virtual try-ons. Together, they represent a real shift in how she discovers product. She can find an item, picture herself in it and see the whole look together.

Looking forward, we are building our 2027 plan now guided by transformation and focus. We have more clarity than ever before about our customer, the services and experiences she wants, and the value that we offer to both her and to our brand partners. We have a deep conviction that there is meaningful opportunity to grow revenue and profit by deepening our relationship with the customer we already have, by growing new customers and through disciplined execution.

As a reminder, last fall, we recapitalized the business in a transaction led by STORY3 Capital Partners, Nexus Capital Management and Aranda Principal Strategies. These investors continue to have confidence in our strategy and growth plans, and we are actively working with them on the funding to support it. Today, we announced our plan to launch a rights offering to holders of our Class A common stock, backstopped by these investors, for $15 million to support the company's operational plans and liquidity.

This is the plan Paige is coming in to lead. The strategy is set, the team is in place and the work is underway. I'm proud of the work to date and excited about the work ahead. We have made real progress securing more of the assortment that she wants, building discovery experiences that help her see herself in the product, and improving the consistency of her experience throughout. We will keep pushing on all 3 of these.

Serving as Interim CEO and President has been truly a privilege, and I could not be more confident in our strategy in this team and in Paige as the leader to carry it forward.

With that, I will turn it over to Dave Loretta. This is Dave's first earnings call with us. And in the 3 months he's been here, he has brought a true rigor into this business that I have valued enormously.

David Loretta

Thank you, Teri. Let me start by saying how pleased I am to be on the call today. I joined Rent the Runway as Interim CFO 3 months ago with a strong belief in the potential of the Rent the Runway brand, the significant opportunities to drive margin improvement, and our commitment to building a stronger financial foundation. In the current dynamic environment, I believe this company is well positioned to reaffirm its authority in the fashion industry while strengthening our operating discipline to deliver improved financial results.

Turning to performance in the second quarter. We delivered $98 million in net revenue, an all-time record for the company. We grew revenue 21% over Q2 of last year and 9% sequentially over the first quarter. Our top line reflects healthy quarter-over-quarter growth in revenue per subscriber and increased add-on revenue that continues to build as we've invested in new ways to provide flexibility and choices in our monthly subscription offering. The subscription price increases that were effective August 1 of last year have contributed to the revenue growth and driven flow-through to better bottom line results.

Our other revenue line, inclusive of resale, grew 19% over Q2 of last year, which we believe represents a significant growth opportunity for our business, drawing on the large and growing demand for resale apparel. Our data demonstrates that both subscribers and new visitors see tremendous value in our merchandise assortment. And when we price our pieces for resale, we aim to make room for more newness in the offering and drive higher gross margins.

From a gross margin expansion standpoint, Q2 improved roughly 600 basis points. We leveraged both product costs and fulfillment costs to support the second quarter margin expansion. Our discipline in controlling G&A costs while maintaining similar investment levels to last year in key technology initiatives and marketing has added approximately 1,000 basis points of leverage in the second quarter, resulting in significant year-over-year improvement in our operating profitability.

Consistent with what we noted on the first quarter call, the year-over-year growth in ending active subscriber count decelerated in Q2, primarily due to our stronger promotional activity last year and a higher rate of pause activity this year. As we continue to measure the efficiencies of our growth investments, we are focusing the mix of marketing spend and promotions with the goal to drive customers to our platform that are profitable.

Collectively, we remain confident in our full year outlook for revenue growth and earnings performance as evidenced by affirming the full year guidance on net revenue and adjusted EBITDA. In addition, we continue to expect improved free cash flow in 2026 compared to last year. Our liquidity position has strengthened with a $10 million term loan as detailed in the third amendment to our credit agreement with the same investor group that led our 2025 refinancing. This provides both operating flexibility and investment dry powder.

In addition, with the backstopped rights offering that we announced today, we plan to launch an equity raise in the amount of $15 million to further bolster our liquidity position and support ongoing growth. The vote of confidence by our investor group sends a positive message and underpins our 3-pronged operating approach that focuses on: first, growing our customer base; second, improving our profitability; and third, executing with discipline. As Teri stated, we believe that our key to success lies in refocusing on these fundamentals.

Now I'll review our second quarter results before providing an update on Q3 and the full year guidance. We ended the second quarter with 140,826 active subscribers, down 3.8% year-over-year. Average active subscribers during the quarter were 148,259, an increase of 1% year-over-year. The decrease in ending active subscribers was driven primarily by a year-over-year increase in the rate of pause and the year-over-year decrease in the number of subscribers acquired due to the stronger use of promotions in 2025, which we have reduced this year.

Total revenue for the quarter was $97.7 million, up 20.8% year-over-year and up 8.7% quarter-over-quarter. Our rental revenue was up $14.6 million or 21% year-over-year, primarily due to higher average revenue per subscriber driven by the subscription price increase effective August 1 of last year and an increase in the volume of add-on bookings. This was partially offset by lower reserve revenue versus Q2 of last year. Other revenue increased $2.2 million or 18.8% year-over-year, primarily due to significantly higher resale revenue.

Moving to our cost structure. Fulfillment costs were $23.5 million in the second quarter, versus $22.5 million last year, and as a percentage of revenue was 24.1% compared to 27.8% last year. This decline in a percentage of revenue was primarily due to higher revenue per order, partially offset by higher transportation and warehouse processing costs.

Gross profit margin was 36.1% in Q2, versus 30% last year, representing a 609 basis point improvement. This is primarily due to the rental product depreciation and revenue share costs that decreased 240 basis points as a percentage of revenue from last year and fulfillment expenses that decreased 370 basis points from last year.

Second quarter operating expenses were 2% lower year-over-year due to lower G&A expenses. Total operating expenses, which include technology, marketing and G&A, represented 42% of revenue in the quarter, versus 51.7% of revenue last year. Adjusted EBITDA for the second quarter was $12.6 million or 12.9% of revenue, versus $3.6 million or 4.4% of revenue in Q2 of last year.

Free cash flow for year-to-date 2026 was negative $21.6 million, versus negative $32.9 million in year-to-date 2025. The improvement versus prior year was primarily due to lower inventory related capital expenditures as well as increased operating income, partially offset by less working capital benefits.

Turning to guidance for 2026. We are reiterating our double-digit revenue growth guidance for the full fiscal year 2026 and reiterating our adjusted EBITDA guidance of 4% to 7% of revenue for fiscal year 2026.

We now expect rental product investment to be in the range of $53 million to $55 million in fiscal year '26, which is down from fiscal year '25 of $75 million, but is an increase from our previous guidance of $45 million to $50 million. The change in this investment amount reflects our plans to remain flexible and dynamic with where we acquire rental inventory and also to ensure key fall events and new product launches in the second half are more fully stocked.

For Q3 2026, we expect revenue to be between $87 million and $90 million, representing between flat to 3% growth versus Q3 2025. As noted earlier, our subscription fee price increases were effective at the beginning of Q3 of '25, and we are now lapping the impact of that in net revenue. Note that our guidance reflects our expectation that active subscribers will be roughly flat in the back half of 2026 and resale revenue will continue to grow in the second half. We also expect reserve orders will grow supported by the increased inventory investment.

We expect Q3 adjusted EBITDA to be between negative 3% and negative 6% of revenue, which is expected to be driven primarily by the normal seasonality of higher subscription pause activations in Q3, which impacts revenue, and the product cost impact of receiving more revenue share inventory during Q3 compared to other quarters.

In conclusion, our second quarter results reflect meaningful financial progress. We delivered record revenue, expanded gross margin and improved year-to-date free cash flow versus the prior year. With this progress, I believe we are well positioned for the back half of '26, and I expect our renewed focus on core fundamentals will support long-term value creation for Rent the Runway.

Before I sign off, I do want to thank Teri for her leadership during this transition. It has been a pleasure to work alongside her, and I believe the operating discipline we are building together is reflected in these results. I'm excited and look forward to partnering with Paige as she steps into the CEO role and continuing the progress we have shared today.

With that, thank you for joining the call today.

Operator

This will conclude today's conference. You may disconnect your lines at this time. Thank you for your participation, and have a wonderful day.