Honey Birdette Q1 Sales -13%

Playboy lost $9.04 million on revenues of $28.88 million in the first quarter compared to a bigger loss of $16.45 million on slightly higher revenues of $28.32 million in the first three months of last year.

PLBY Group CEO Ben Kohn also revealed that lingerie brand Honey Birdette experienced a “13% YoY decline in total revenue,” but asserted this came “as we prioritize brand health and reduce days on sale. The decline in Honey Birdette revenue was solely related to cutting sale days and was offset by full price sales being up 8% YoY, which now represent 80% of Honey Birdette’s total sales, up from 65% a year ago. Honey Birdette’s gross margin expanded to 58% from 52% YoY. Primarily due to these results, we significantly reduced net loss and achieved our first positive adjusted EBITDA quarter since 2023, with adjusted EBITDA of $2.4 million, up almost $5 million from a loss of over $2.5 million in Q1 of 2024.”  

Meanwhile licensing revenue from the Playboy brand “grew 175% Q1 year-over-year (“YoY”), as the Byborg licensing deal went into effect on January 1. Even without the benefit of Byborg, licensing still grew 54% YoY, primarily from the rebuilding of our China licensing business.” In recent months, Playboy signed large licensing and equity investment agreements with Byborg Enterprises, a Luxembourg based firm that offers, it claims, “online entertainment” for “over 70 million daily visitors engaging with” its  streaming and technology products.

Playboy reported that in the period, “direct-to-consumer revenue was $16.3 million, down 13% from the $18.7 million in Q1 2024. The decrease in revenue was due to lower promotional activity in Q1 2025 for the Honey Birdette business.”