NWG // FINANCIAL INFORMATION
F i n a n c i a l i n f o r m a t i o n
Board of Directors ' report
The Board of Directors and CEO of New Wave Group AB ( publ ), 556350-0916 , based in Gothenburg , hereby submit the financial statements and consolidated financial statements for the financial year 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2023 .
New Wave Group is a growth company that creates , acquires and develops brands .
Our brands are categorized into three operating segments : Corporate , Sports & Leisure and Gifts & Home Furnishings .
The Group will achieve synergies by coordinating the design , purchasing , marketing , warehousing , and distribution of the product range .
To ensure good allocation of risks , the Group will offer its products in the promo market and the retail market .
New Wave Group ’ s competitiveness lies primarily in its strong brands , considerable expertise , high level of service , and a well-developed overall concept . Products are primarily manufactured in Asia , and to a lesser extent in Europe . Thanks to its relative size , New Wave Group has good purchasing prices and efficient logistics . The Group ’ s most well-known wholly-owned brands include AHEAD , Auclair , Clique , Cottover , Craft , Cutter & Buck , Grizzly , J . Harvest & Frost , James Harvest Sportswear , Jobman , Kosta Boda , Orrefors , PAX , Projob , Sagaform , Seger , Tenson and Toppoint .
Summary of 2023
The strong development that the Group had in 2022 also continued into the first quarter of the year . Net sales for the quarter increased by 20 % ( of which currency 6 % and 9 % acquired operations ) and amounted to SEK 2,135.5 ( 1,774.9 ) million . All segments increased their net sales , but mainly it increased in Corporate and Sports & Leisure . The Group had growth in both sales channels . The majority of our geographic regions also showed growth , it was only Other countries and our trading operations in Asia that decreased . The Group improved its operating result by SEK 104.4 million to SEK 313.5 ( 209.1 ) million . We increased the pace of product development , marketing , etc . in most countries .
The market was weaker in the second quarter than we previously estimated , but net sales increased by 14 % ( of which currency 5 % and 9 % acquired operations ). Of our segments , Corporate had growth , while Sports & Leisure and Gifts & Home Furnishings declined . The promo sales channel increased net sales while retail sales decreased . The USA , Sweden and the Nordic countries ( excl . Sweden ) decreased their net sales , while the regions Central and Southern Europe and Other countries increased . The Group took market shares in a weaker market . Operating result was at the same level as last year and amounted to SEK 363.9 ( 351.0 ) million . The operating margin was still above our target but decreased compared to the previous year and amounted to 15.8 ( 17.4 %). During the quarter , the Group began successful efforts to focus on cash flow . Cash flow from operating activities improved and amounted to SEK 230.1 ( 68.1 ) million .
The third quarter of the year had a challenging market with price reductions on a number of basic goods . The Group continued to gain market share and net sales increased by 5 %, of which currency 4 % and acquired operations 7 %. Acquired business refers to B . T . C Activewear Ltd which was acquired on 1 September 2022 and that New Wave Group AB on 1 July 2023 acquired 100 % of the shares in the Swedish outdoor company Tenson AB . Excluding acquired operations , all segments were slightly lower than last year . Both sales channels increased their net sales , which were related to the acquired units and excluding these , sales in both channels decreased . The Group had growth in the European regions but decreased in other regions . Operating result decreased slightly compared to the previous year and amounted to SEK 381.1 ( 397.8 ) million . The operating margin amounted to 16.3 ( 17.8 ) %, which is the second highest operating margin
ANNUAL REPORT // 063