The SILK Laser Australia Ltd (ASX: SLA) share price is on the move on Monday morning.
In early trade, the laser, skin care, and cosmetic injections company's shares are up 3% to $3.92.
This means the SILK share price is now up 13.5% from its December IPO price of $3.45.
Why is the SILK share price rising today?
Investors have been buying the company's shares this morning after it announced the achievement of a key milestone.
According to the release, SILK has now reached a total of 60 clinics nationwide after opening two new clinics in Woden, ACT and Charlestown, NSW.
The release advises that the new clinic openings are in line with SILK's organic network growth strategy of rolling out additional clinics in markets where it is currently under-penetrated, including Canberra and Newcastle.
SILK has now opened ten new clinics in FY 2021, with two more clinics expected to open by the end of the month. This will exceed SILK's organic growth goal of opening six to ten new clinics per annum as the company progresses to its medium-term network plan of approximately 150 clinics.
The new Woden and Charlestown clinics operate under the joint venture ownership model, with leading cosmetic injectable nurses as SILK's joint venture partners in these clinics.
Both joint venture partners have a strong existing client base in their respective markets. As a result, the new clinics are expected to ramp up sales quickly and generate positive cash flow and EBITDA in their first year of operation.
Management commentary
SILK's Managing Director and Co-Founder, Martin Perelman, commented: "We are very excited to launch our newest injector-led clinics in Woden and Charlestown. The joint venture ownership model offers the injector nurses an attractive entry into business ownership while allowing us to attract key talent to SILK and deliver strong clinic performance from day-one."
"Our first clinic in Canberra opened in March this year and, pleasingly, it has performed in line with expectations. We see great potential in the ACT market, and we're excited to expand our presence there to two locations following the opening of our Woden clinic."
"The Charlestown clinic in Newcastle is off to a flying start, recording SILK's highest opening day of sales on record. We are fortunate to have two experienced nurse injectors with strong existing client bases onboard to lead our newest clinics, and I am confident that they will be successful in their respective markets," he concluded.
Trading update
SILK also revealed that it remains on track to achieve its upgraded guidance in FY 2021.
Network cash sales is expected in the range of $82 million to $86 million, with pro forma EBITDA forecast to be in the range of $15 million to $16 million.
