News HG AG Bilanz 2009

Hansgrohe AG records a good year in fiscal 2009 – and is ready to take off in the course of the recovery

Stuttgart/Schiltach, May 19, 2010. “No short-time work, no lay-offs, no cuts to wages and benefits, no investment stop, no radical budget cuts,” is how Siegfried Gänßlen, Chairman of the Management Board of Hansgrohe AG (www.hansgrohe.com), summed up the last financial year during today's financial press conference in Stuttgart. “2009 was definitely a challenging year. As a company operating with a global reach, we certainly felt the effects of the economic crisis on world trade and on the construction industry – as did the entire international sanitation sector. However, the drop in revenues anticipated in these general economic conditions was contained within the single-digit percentage range thanks to the countermeasures we adopted at an early stage, and as a result of the joint efforts we undertook together with our market partners.” Total net sales of Hansgrohe AG in fiscal 2009 amounted to € 610 million (2008: € 668 million) – which represents a decline of 8.6 percent year-on-year. Earnings before interest, taxes and depreciation of this Black Forest-based fittings and shower manufacturer even improved in spite of lower sales, setting a new record at € 140 million (2008: € 131 million). The EBITDA margin climbed to 22.9 percent in the last financial year (2008: 19.7 percent). Similarly, it was possible to maintain personnel levels at the previous year’s level with around 3,100 employees worldwide, more than 60 percent of whom working in Germany. “We managed to further improve our market position both on the home market and abroad,” was the positive assessment by the CEO of Hansgrohe. “2009 was a good year for our company.”

2009 – the year of innovations
Indeed, the focus on improving our customer service, the continuation of the international expansion strategy, an intelligent cost management system and the increase in its innovative power have all contributed towards keeping the company on a steady course. “The fact that we succeeded in improving our competitive position in an uncertain market environment can be attributed to the fact that we persisted with our strategy and continued to invest heavily in innovation in 2009,” stressed the Hansgrohe CEO.

Investing in the future
The fact that there was sufficient scope last year to make strategic investments in growth areas, in the further development of international markets and in its own junior talent staff was due to having an intelligent cost management system and flexible cost structures in place. Under the efficiency enhancement program “Hansgrohe Plus 21”, which has been rolled out systematically since 2001, the company realized savings in the order € 33 million alone. The constant improvement of our cost structures while maintaining the same high standard of quality is also creating the necessary conditions for investing in the development of new ideas and the exploitation of additional growth potentials in the current financial year. The company will spend about € 37 million – more than ever before in the history of Hansgrohe – in upgrading its production facilities and in innovations in terms of technologies, design, quality and sustainability. “Of this total, some 30 million euros will be invested in our German locations," announced Siegfried Gänßlen. “In 2010, we will be building again to enlarge our fittings manufacturing plant in Offenburg by about 50 percent. This will involve the creation of some 50 to 100 new jobs, depending on our business performance.”

Moreover, the Hansgrohe Group will continue with its strategy of internationalization and further boost its sales team. Following the establishment of subsidiaries in South Africa, Australia, Croatia and Mexico in 2009, the Black Forest-based fittings and shower manufacturer opened a regional office in Abu Dhabi as well as a flagship store in Dubai in January this year. “Preparations for the continued expansion in South America, South East Asia and the Middle East are already in full swing,” reported Hansgrohe's Chairman of the Management Board. “Because we are confident that our quality products ‘Made in Germany’ will prove successful in these promising regions as well. Together with our market partners we will emerge from this crisis stronger than before and return to growth this year. We are ready to take off at full throttle as soon as the economy picks up.”

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