Calida Group sales rise in face of tough market situation in H1
26 Sep '05
4 min read
The acquisition of the French Aubade Group, a market leader in the segment of luxury lingerie, took place in the reporting period. The consequence was that Calida became a group of companies with two major brands and a strong market position both within and outside German-speaking Europe.
As the transaction was only closed on 21 July 2005, Aubade was not included in the consolidation for the first half-year. Compared with the same period of the previous year, Aubade achieved somewhat higher sales of 28.6 million Euro with slightly lower earnings. The integration work is progressing according to plan.
In May 2005, Calida Holding AG placed a first tranche of 60,000 shares with institutional investors as part of the capital increase approved by the Annual General Meeting. Due to the positive development of cash-flow and the good prospects for the full financial year 2005, the planned issuance of a second tranche was renounced.
As the main shareholders did not participate in the capital increase, their proportional shareholding was reduced. The Kellenberger family is currently still holding 37.2 percent and Marco Vögele 7.2 percent of the share capital of Calida Holding AG. This means that the target of a free float of more than 50per cent has been achieved. Calida has therefore been transformed definitively from a family business into a publicly owned company.
Calida Holding AG is the leading Swiss producer of underwear and is listed on the SWX Swiss Exchange. The Calida brand has a validated recognition ratio of more than 99 percent in Switzerland. In 2004, the Calida group achieved gross sales of CHF 138.0 million and a net profit of CHF 5.3 million. Calida's headquarters are in Sursee (Canton Lucerne) and the group has a factory in Rajko/Hungary.
The group employs 630 people. At the end of April 2005, Calida was able to announce the acquisition of Aubade Paris. Aubade, with sales of about €50 million (2004), is one of the leading lingerie brands in the luxury segment of the French market.
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