Marimekko shines in Q1 as it sells more at full price

By

Sandra Halliday

Published
May 16, 2019

Marimekko had good news on Thursday as it reported Q1 net sales that rose 13% and a doubling in comparable operating profit, helped by the timing of Asia Pacific wholesale deliveries and stronger Finnish retail sales.

Net sales rose to €27.1 million and grew in all markets. Sales in Finland rose by 7% and international sales surged 18% to €14.3 million.
As well as the Apac and specific Finnish performances, the company said that sales in EMEA did well.

So what did this all translate into as far as profitability was concerned? Operating profit rose to €2.6 million from €1.2 million on the back of the sales growth and better margins, with stronger full-price sales being key.

And its net sales for 2019 as a whole are forecast to be higher than 2018, although comparable operating profit should be broadly flat.

President and CEO Tiina Alahuhta-Kasko said of all this: “The year got off to an excellent start. The results of our brand's new direction and the work we have done to update our collections are visible more rapidly in our strong domestic market. All in all, I feel we can be pleased with the first quarter.”

She added that e-commerce expansion also played an important part as one of its growth drivers, especially in Asia where the brand is particularly strong. 

“This spring, we have continued our investment in building brand recognition and in online sales in China,” she said. “Since online sales in China are still in a very early stage, we will incur expenses this year. In addition to our own e-commerce, we are also seeking growth through other online sales channels. In February, the online retailer Zalando began selling our products in Finland and Germany. Zalando reaches a massive number of consumers and will enhance the availability of our products, also boosting our profile.”

The company remains focused on ensuring that both online and offline work well together and the CEO said: “We want to challenge the traditional way of doing retail business and to blend the physical and digital worlds into an inspiring and easy customer experience.”

To this end, it piloted “a totally new kind of service during Milan Design Week.” In the heart of the city, it set up a shoppable Marimekko home, in which customers could buy individual products or, if they preferred, buy the entire décor including furniture through an online app.