Refill.Gross margin as a percentage of net sales for Refill improved to 32.2% for the three months ended December 31, 2019 from 31.1% for the three months ended December 31, 2018, primarily due to an increase of 2.0% in five-gallon equivalent units to 22.6 million, which drove a higher gross margin percentage due to the fixed nature of certain costs in Refill.
Exchange.Gross margin as a percentage of net sales for Exchange was 28.3% for the three months ended December 31, 2019, compared to 30.4% for the three months ended December 31, 2018. The decrease was primarily due to increased costs associated with consumer-focused promotional efforts, including the instantly redeemable coupons for free water with the purchase of a dispenser, as well as a change in product and retailer mix compared to the prior year.
Dispensers.Gross margin as a percentage of net sales for Dispensers decreased to 2.8% for the three months ended December 31, 2019 from 13.9% for the three months ended December 31, 2018, primarily due to a shift in product and customer mix, as well as the benefit associated with Tariff exclusion received in the prior period.
Year Ended December 31, 2019 Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2018
Net sales. Net sales increased 4.8% to $316.7 million for 2019 from $302.1 million for 2018. The change was primarily due to increases in sales for Dispensers and Exchange. Net sales adjusted for the June 2019 sale of the Ice Assets (“Adjusted Net Sales”) increased 6.7%. See the Adjusted Net Sales table below.
Refill. Refill net sales decreased 5.2% to $165.8 million for 2019. Adjusted Net Sales for Refill, which excludes the impact of the sale of the Ice Assets, decreased 2.4%, due primarily to a 5.6% decrease in five-gallon equivalent units to 90.8 million. See the Adjusted Net Sales for Refill table below.
Exchange.Exchange net sales increased 11.0% to $86.6 million for 2019, driven by the increase in U.S. same-store units of 16.5%. Five-gallon equivalent units for Exchange increased 13.9% to 18.5 million units for 2019. The increase in Exchange sales and units was aided by an increase in the number of locations and by the consumer focused promotional efforts, including instantly redeemable coupons for free water with the purchase of a dispenser and new display andin-store signage.
Dispensers. Dispensers net sales increased 30.9% to $64.2 million for 2019 due to growth in consumer demand and retailer orders driven by certain promotional activities. Consumer demand, which the Company measures as the dispenser unit sales to end consumers, increased 22.2% to a record 887,000 units for 2019.
Gross margin percentage.The overall gross margin percentage was 25.8% for 2019, below the 28.7% for 2018, primarily due to a shift in sales mix towards Dispensers and lower gross margin percentages in Refill and Exchange.
Refill.Gross margin as a percentage of net sales for Refill was 31.4% for 2019 compared to 32.7% for 2018. The decrease was primarily due to lower net sales for Refill, which drove a lower gross margin percentage due to the fixed nature of certain costs in Refill, as well as incremental operating costs related to addressing machine downtime.
Exchange.Gross margin as a percentage of net sales for Exchange was 29.9% for 2019, compared to 31.4% for 2018. The decrease was primarily due to increased costs associated with consumer-focused promotional efforts, including the instantly redeemable coupons for free water with the purchase of a dispenser, as well as a change in product and retailer mix compared to the prior year.
Dispensers.Gross margin as a percentage of net sales for Dispensers decreased to 5.9% for 2019 from 9.8% for 2018, primarily due to a shift in product and customer mix.