Lindex Group Oyj (LINDEX) Earnings Call Transcript & Summary

Good morning, and welcome to our half year financial reporting session. As earlier, with me, we have our CEO from Lindex, Susanne Ehnbage; and our CFO, Pekka Vähähyyppä. Before we start, I would like to apologize, as last time we didn't get through the questions through this webcast. So now before we start, I would like to highlight that below the picture, you see a sentence "Click here to open the questions form" where you can send the questions to us. And we would really appreciate if one of you could send us just hello, checking that this works before we enter to the Q&A session at the end of this presentation. So let's start with the results. As we came out this morning, our revenue increased over 21% in comparable currency rates. Gross margin improved by 6.5% to 60.5%. Operating result increased both in Lindex and Stockmann, ending up with improving EUR 26 million. And our cash balance improved by EUR 30 million. Lindex had a fantastic quarter. Revenue was up almost 33%, ending up with EUR 162 million, and the growth on online sales was over 50%. Sales increased in all markets and all business areas. And the operating cost increased due to lower lockdowns as stores were open when we compare with the previous year. And Lindex operating result improved by EUR 15 million, ending up over EUR 32 million. Also, Stockmann division improved its revenue by 9%, ending up to EUR 66 million. Our online decreased in quarter 2 over 20% due to the fact that the brick-and-mortar was clearly more -- getting more active versus the previous year. Operating cost, as Lindex, increased slightly, and operating results improved by EUR 11 million versus the previous year, still slightly negative. If we look closer to the Stockmann division. As we have used this graph before, we try to explain what has happened since 2019 comparing to the current status during the COVID epidemic. And if we look now quarter 2 '21, we are still below 2019 with 23%. Sales in Q2 increased 11.5% versus 2020 but were 23% smaller than 2019. And I would like to highlight, the market is also over 20% below versus '19 as there has been COVID implications also this year. And we are missing the tourists -- the international tourists completely in our market. What is really delightful to see is that the brick-and-mortar sales increased 25% versus 2020, but it is still declined versus 2019. Our online revenue declined in this period as we had lockdowns in 2020 and now brick-and-mortar was more open and more active and still Stockmann division online share of sales is over 20%. And if we compare our online sales with 2019, we have 82% increase in online. Sales in June decreased by 5% versus '20 and 20% versus 2019 due to the lack of the tourists. The key highlights of the division in Q2. Our revenue was up by 9%, and the brick-and-mortar sales increased by 25% versus 2025. Gross margin was improving because we were able to increase our full-price sales and reduce markdowns versus 2020. Operating results, slightly negative, but a clear improvement of EUR 11.3 million. The market in the first half increased by 7.4%. And when we compare versus '19, the total market is still over 20% below '19. If I would like to list some highlights, I think the key message is our strategy is working. In Stockmann, we want to come back to our core, create the best service, the newness, uniqueness in our offering but also how do we inspire our customers. And with opening several restaurants, renewing our department stores, we've been able to walk the talk of our strategy journey going forward. Also, sustainability is coming more clearly into our DNA and way of working in the future. Relove opening has been a real success, and it has increased the right target audience in the total department store area. But also the new fossil-free climate compensated online delivery is improving our sustainability dimension when we talk about our online business. Way forward in Stockmann, we will continue with our department store renewals. We will continue in Helsinki. Helsinki is renewing many of its departments. We will improve our Riga delicatessen and open a new more fabulous delicatessen department in the beginning of September. Also in Tampere, we will open a new delicatessen in -- towards end of August. We will focus and continue focusing on digital development, improving our customer experience and strengthening our omnichannel setup and smoothening the journey for our customers wherever they want to do business with us. As stated in our restructuring program, the sale and leaseback process of the department store properties located in Helsinki, Tallinn and Riga are proceeding well. The interest is both domestic and international, and we are happy with the process as so far. We will also keep improving our execution capabilities for the strategic priority areas. And we will proceed with our operational efficiency and turn around the Stockmann division also to the positive numbers. And with now, I would like to give the floor to Susanne and tell you more about Stockmann -- sorry, Lindex division results.

Thank you so much, Jari, and let's go into Lindex and then we take the next slide. Thank you. So it has been a continued challenging time, and now things are finally slowly going back to a new normal state. The world is beginning to open up, and so have we. I would like start with showing the Lindex sales development during the pandemic and the development versus 2019. And this picture really shows the challenges that we have had during the past 1.5 years. It is very gratifying that we, during the second quarter, managed to strongly increase our sales compared both to previous year and to 2019 despite the challenges with closed stores in the majority of our sales markets. We even increased our sales versus 2019 with 4.1%, which is a strong sign that we are back on track, which can be seen especially in June's figures, where we increased sales by 23% compared to 2019. If we take a look at the next page and into our financial performance for the quarter, our revenue was EUR 162 million, which is an increase of 32.7% or 25.6% in comparable currency rates. We increased sales in all of our markets and business areas compared to previous year. We had our strongest increase in Finland, Czech Republic and Slovakia. And our online sales increased by 51.4%, which is more than triple compared to 2019. We increased the digital sales in all of our markets and business areas. And our digital share now stands for 19.5% compared to 16.2% previous year. We continued to have a better sales development than the market for all of our Nordic sales countries. And our gross margin increased to 67.1% due to increased full-price sales, reduced markdowns and also better intake margins. Our operating costs increased to EUR 57.5 million. The cost increase compared to previous year's strong cost cuts and due to increased sales. We delivered a greatly improved result for both the second quarter and also for the first half year, which reflects Lindex successful development and growth where our fantastic assortment and all committed employees, great customer focus and efforts have been central. Our operating result amounted to EUR 32.2 million, a very strong improvement compared to the same period both last year and 2019. A good sales growth and strengthened margin as well as a good cost control have all contributed to the strong results. Looking at our highlights for the quarter. Our increased sales in all of our markets and business areas compared to previous year is worth mentioning. In the beginning of the quarter, we had closed stores in most of our markets. Due to government decisions, about 25% of our stores were closed. But the situation for our stores improved significantly in May and June due to reopening, which was gratifying. It is also very positive to see that our strong digital growth have continued also when our physical stores have reopened. It proves that our customers appreciate our offer and the possibility to shop where they want. We are growing both through our own e-commerce and together with global fashion platforms. And we have continued to develop and grow our successful online assortment and increased volumes. Shopping patterns and customer behaviors are changing at an even ever-faster pace, and we are continuously working on how to provide an even more inspiring shopping experience and meet our customers where they want to be met. Our appreciated Lindex app is a good example of that initiative and to create value for our customer. It is an easy tool for shopping online and has great features like the scan function. It is a great source for inspiration for our customers and also inspires to visit our stores, not just shop online. And during the spring, we have launched our app in several markets where we see great potential also going forward as it is introduced in more and more markets. We have also taken important steps in our sustainability promise and the circular transformation. Our pilot with Lindex secondhand and new circular business model is an example in our work of prolonging the lifetime of clothes and save natural resources. Exploring circular business model is an important part of Lindex circular transformation and reaching our climate goal to reduce the CO2 emissions in our entire value chain with 50% by 2030. Another important step in our work to achieve our climate goal is that we have switched to biofuel for all of our ocean freights. We are, therefore, one of the first retailers globally to take this step, and this means that we are decarbonizing our entire ocean freight shipments. We are also very proud that we have been ranked as one of the global leaders in the transition to more sustainable materials and circularity by the Textile Exchange. At present, more than 70% of our garments are made from recycled or more sustainable source materials. And we continue our work to reach our goal of 100% by 2025. We have also, during the spring, launched a toolbox available for everyone in the industry who wants to work with more gender-equal and inclusive workplaces in their supply chain. One of our goals with our program, WE Women by Lindex, is to share our experience and tools because when we join forces and work in the same direction with other companies, that is when we can create movement together that will make a difference. We truly also believe in the inclusiveness and the body positivity. We have talked about that before. And for us, this means doing our part in making women feel inspired and self-confident. We are constantly developing our assortment to become even more inclusive. And based on input from our customers earlier this year, we have launched bra sizes now up to size H. And another highlight is that we also, in the end of April, opened our first store in Malta. The new market is our latest addition into our franchise expansion. And by this, Lindex is now present with physical stores in 19 markets. Looking into our Way Forward, we continue our focus on digital development to further strengthening our global growth and meeting our customers' needs and behaviors. We will implement a new loyalty program system to be even more relevant for our loyal customers. We will invest in our digital transformation of stores, developing new tools, features and systems, and increase our competencies. Our new workforce management system will be rolled out as well as a new point of sale system. New digital tools will free up time for focusing even more on our customers. And when maximizing our sales channels, potentials and synergies with a digital-first approach, we will grow for the future. To enable our growth, we are evaluating and designing a new logistic platform for our future supply chain and planning for a new distribution center supplying all of our sales channels. We will also proceed with our cost control and efficiency, and we will continue creating flexibility and having an agile approach in our actions. We will develop and optimize our strong offer with the customer needs in focus, growing our online additions and continue to develop our cross-functional collection based on our strengths. We will proceed our important work and transformation to reach our goals and fulfill our sustainability promise for future generations. During the past year, we have strengthened our brand, and we as a company stand stronger than before. When corona hit the world, we decided to be the company handling the situation the best possible way. I am so far really, really proud of how we have succeeded to parry and stand strong in the pandemic, creating the company that Lindex is. Our actions and our efforts have really had a successful effect and where everyone creates flexibility, contribution and commitment have been key. Together, we have created the company, which Lindex is, and we'll continue to strive for even greater things in the future. Thanks for listening, and I will now hand over to Pekka.

Thank you, Susanne, and welcome on my behalf as well. I will begin with the restructuring program. Since February this year, we have been executing our restructuring program, and that is proceeding well. Like Jari already said, the sale and leaseback process of the department store properties is proceeding according to the plan. In addition to that, we have done -- we have combined the A and B share classes in April '21, and we have cut half of the hybrid bond in Q1 also. We have had a conversion process of restructuring debt and hybrid bond into shares, and EUR 72.2 million were converted into shares. And that took place in July. Also, we issued a new secured bond and EUR 66.1 million were converted into that bond. So to sum up, we have -- after these conversions, we have a strong balance sheet in July. The combination of share classes and increase in number of shares will impact in our share liquidity. And last but not least, the remaining undisputed restructuring debt is EUR 22.8 million (sic) [ EUR 21.8 ]. Then the consolidated financials. Like Jari already said, our revenue grew up to EUR 228 million. Growth was more than 21%. And the adjusted operating result ended up to EUR 26.7 million when it last year was a bit less than EUR 1 million. In this graph, I think I would like to highlight the comparison in the figures versus '19. The bottom quarterly operating result graph shows comparison not only versus last year but versus '19, which we can say was kind of a normal year considering the COVID situation. And our second quarter result was even better than in 2019. Some key figures. Our balance sheet total, in the bottom of the graph, is EUR 1.4 billion. You can see a clear reduction in the lease liabilities. Versus last year's second quarter, the lease liabilities have gone down by roughly EUR 160 million. And that means that we have been renegotiating the lease agreements as a part of the restructuring proceedings. Our CapEx during second quarter and during the first half is EUR 4.6 million. So we have been very tight in investing investments and continue to allocate cash very precisely, so to say. Our cash and cash equivalents, like Jari already mentioned, is strong, more than EUR 155 million, EUR 30 million up versus previous year's and also up from the end of the year. Our adjusted operating result for the full half was EUR 5.6 million when it, last year, was negative EUR 26 million. Moving on to guidance and outlook. Market outlook is pretty much same what we have said earlier. However, the visibility has improved and thereby, we are able -- glad and able to provide the guidance for the full year. And we expect a clear increase in the group revenue and the adjusted operating result to be clearly positive, assuming that no major COVID restrictions are imposed. With these words, I would end my part, and we open to Q&A. Thank you.

Yes. The first question from [ Rauli Vatuyare ]. You mentioned in the report, property divestments are progressing in line with the restructuring program. Does this mean you expect a deal to be made during 2021, given that this is the time frame in the program?

This is what we are aiming for.

Then to Susanne. Do you see the second quarter sales still suffered from lockdowns or, on the other hand, was supported by pent-up demand? So do you see the second quarter a representative post-COVID quarter?

Of course, very hard to say. But as I said, we had approximately 25% of the stores closed, not for the full quarter, but in April and also a big part of May. I believe that what has contributed to the good sales, as what I've said before, it's -- we have a good and strong offer. It has been also a good weather. And that means that there's a demand for customers to buy clothes for themselves and also for their children. And more and more people are being in more social attendance. And I think that, that has also contributed to the strong sales increase.

And then Laura Kukkonen from Helsingin Sanomat. When are you announcing the buyer of the Helsinki department store?

As I said, sale and leaseback process is progressing well. We will come back with announcements when we are ready.

Yes. Then we still wait for a moment for further questions. So please just ask.

I think, all in all, while we're waiting for the questions. So we are very satisfied with the circumstances for the results we delivered. As said, Lindex has really done a remarkable job. But also Stockmann division improvement versus where we've been, it is a great job. And this is a great teamwork by everybody at the company. So this is a great result of good cooperation within the company, everybody committed to improve our way forward.

Then one question from [ Fredric Hegmann ], [indiscernible] about the own structure and the changes concerning the emission and how do we see the change -- possible changes in the future.

Well, as Pekka explained in his presentation, the A and B shares were merged into one. So the combination of shares increased the number of shares and impact the share liquidity. We, as operative management, treat every shareholder the same way. So I think the market is -- will be more volatile and will be following more, but it's also for the investors more clear, what do I get if I buy Stockmann shares.

That was all so far. Let's wait a couple of seconds if we get some more questions. [ Alexander ] asking how much is net debt after the equity conversion? To Pekka.

I think we will come back at the preciser figures when we had disclosed Q3 because of these conversions were done in July, but it has clearly improved.

And [ David Kandola ] asking, how large a portion of the properties to be sold will be leased back to Stockmann?

Again, we will come back with the plans and details once the deal is ready.

Then if no further questions, maybe it's time. Thank you for this Q&A session.

Thank you all. And welcome shopping, both at Lindex and Stockmann, we are here for you. So have a nice continuation of the summer and enjoy the great weather we've been experiencing at least here in the Nordics. Goodbye.