One of the largest distributors of roofing material and related supplies has a lofty long-term goal. It wants roofing ecommerce to generate 50% of all its sales.

So far, Beacon Roofing Supply Inc., a 90-year-old distribution company with 517 branches, is closing in on the halfway mark.

On pace to hit its roofing ecommerce target

In 2022, Beacon announced plans to make 25% of residential and commercial sales digital by the end of 2025. The company generates annual sales of $8.4 billion.

More recently, in an updated investor presentation and earnings call transcript, the company appeared on track to hit its milestone.

Beacon does not break out specific ecommerce sales. But for the third quarter ended Sept 31, digital sales comprised about 22% of sales, compared with 13.5% of all sales in 2021 and just 2.4% in 2018.

“Our online capability continues to be a clear competitive differentiator for Beacon since we provide the most complete digital offering in the industry,” CEO Julian Francis told analysts on a recent earnings call, based on a transcript for SeekingAlpha.com. “We have plans to build on our digital leadership by continuing to invest in this area of differentiation.”

For the third quarter, Beacon achieved sales of $2.58 billion. That was an increase of 7% from sales of $2.41 billion in the third quarter of 2022. Net income was $161.3 million compared with $154.8 million in the third quarter of the prior year.

A new high for Beacon

“From a digital perspective, I think the highlight for us in the quarter was that the residential digital sales were at 22% of total sales,” Francis said. “That’s a high watermark for us.”

Beacon Roofing carries an online inventory of about 130,000 SKUs, the distributor says.

“By expanding and promoting our digital solutions, we intend to meet our customers’ changing needs and improve our returns through ecommerce,” the company says. “We will also build strong relationships with suppliers who rely on us to position their products advantageously in the market.”

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