NWG // CEO COMMENTS
" We are very well positioned going forward and have several projects underway."
- Torsten Jansson
CEO
T o r s t e n J a n s s o n comments
We closed 2024 with mixed feelings. It was a year of continued concern and a soft economy, which led to a very challenging market that continued to decline in both retail and promo. I have not seen both of our sales channels experience a shrinking market with the exception of the first 6 months of the pandemic.
Net sales
Net sales ended marginally above the previous year totaling SEK 9,528.7 million compared to SEK 9,512.9 million. The positive thing about this is that we continued to gain market share in a shrinking market, but it is difficult to be positive about this situation as our ambitions and goals are significantly higher. The prediction I made that the market would improve by the end of the year unfortunately was not fulfilled.
Operating result
The operating result also produced mixed outcomes. A decrease of SEK 314.9 million to SEK 1,262.3 million was not satisfactory, but at the same time, it was actually a very strong result in the middle of a declining market where we invested in marketing and continued automation of our warehouses. We also gained market shares in many areas and countries and therefore it places us in a very strong position when the market turns around.
Cash flow and balance sheet
Cash flow from operating activities improved by SEK 314.5 million to SEK 1,278.3 million, which places us in a solid cash position. The balance sheet was further strengthened and equity totaled SEK 7,217.1 million, netting an equity ratio of 63.7 %.
The future
We are very well positioned going forward and have several projects underway in 2025 and 2026. We gained substantial market shares in 2024 and continued our investments and maintained a high level of service, which means that we have very satisfied customers. We will be very pleased with this position once the market turns around. We have also continued the work on sustainability issues as part of our business development and allocated more resources to increase the pace of our sustainability efforts.
We have prepared the establishment of both Harvest & Printer in promo and ProJob in workwear in Canada. We have just started a launch of Craft Teamwear in the USA and will establish this in Canada as well. We are also planning an additional warehouse for Cutter & Buck and Clique in the southern USA as well as 1 to 2 additional establishments in Europe.
In the short term, our investments will lead to a poorer but well-planned cash flow as we need to build up inventory. The operating result will also be negatively impacted to a lesser extent by these establishments, but I am confident that they will create shareholder value. It is difficult to predict exactly when the establishments will occur, as it depends on the lead times required to build up inventory, but the greatest impact is likely to be in Q4 2025 and Q1 2026. I am really looking forward to these establishments and increased growth. In addition to these ' organic ' establishments, we continue to evaluate acquisitions on an ongoing basis.
Thank you for 2024
Thank you to all employees, customers, shareholders and the board for 2024! I look forward to the coming years with great confidence!
Torsten Jansson CEO
008 // ANNUAL REPORT