Logitech's sales skyrocketed during the work-from-home boom

Logitech sales continue to soar during the coronavirus pandemic. The accessory maker recorded sales of $1.26 billion for the three months leading up to September 30th, up $537 million from the same period last year. As Logitech noted in a press release, it’s the first time that the company has eclipsed $1 billion in quarterly sales. Operating income climbed to $321 million and net income rose to $267 million, up $194 million year-over-year. Almost every product category saw growth during the quarter. Sales from mice, keyboards and webcams were all higher than they had been during any of the previous nine quarters. Gaming-related sales also soared to $298 million, up $137 million year-over-year.

The company’s trajectory isn’t surprising. The pandemic has forced countless companies to embrace a work from home culture. Some people already have a computer and high-quality webcam at home. Others do not, though. The demand for reliable accessories has, therefore, been staggeringly high since the start of the year. Logitech is a trusted brand and makes some of the best third-party keyboards, mice and webcams on the market. And as the pandemic wears on, more people are realizing that they’ll be working from home for a long period of time, or possibly permanently. Many who have held out, believing they might return to the office soon, are now realizing that it’s worth upgrading their home office.

The impact of the pandemic stretches beyond enterprise customers, though. Gaming has exploded as a form of safe at-home entertainment. The Logitech G brand caters to PC players with various mice, keyboards and headsets. It also makes webcams that are suitable for streamers and, more recently, has partnered with Herman Miller on a Logitech G-branded gaming chair. Logitech owns Astro, too, which makes controllers and headsets for a variety of platforms including Xbox and PlayStation. Unsurprisingly, Logitech is now highly confident about its performance for the rest of the year. It now expect sales to grow by 35 and 40 percent during the fiscal year, up from its previous 10 to 13 percent estimate.