Norrøna, the Norwegian brand of outerwear, has sealed a distribution deal for the Japanese market with Fullmarks, which built up Haglöfs and still sells a spate of other Scandinavian brands in the country, from Poc to Aclima, Houdini and Hestra. Haglöfs set up its own business in Japan earlier this year, making it easier for Fullmarks to take up another outerwear brand.
Norway remained the company's largest market last year, making up 64 percent of a turnover that reached roughly 244 million Norwegian kroner (€32.4m-$40.4m), an increase of 22 percent compared with the previous year.While the Norwegian sports market was flat last year, Norrøna continued to expand swiftly with sales growth of 20 percent in the country.
Still, the largest part of the brand's expansion has come from international markets, starting with Sweden, which has become Norrøna's second-largest market. The brand was aided there by the opening of a Norrøna concept store in Stockholm, as well as an outlet store in the Barkarby shopping center on the outskirts of the Swedish capital.
Other countries that have contributed to the growth are France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy and the U.K. All of them are supervised by Olivier Gouby, former sales representative for France, who is based in Annecy and became sales manager for central Europe.
Norrøna's overall sell-in so far this year lags behind its projections but the company still expects significant expansion in international sales and some growth in the Norwegian market for the full year. As part of its increasingly focused strategy, the company quit selling its Whiteout apparel brand last year (more in The Outdoor Industry Compass).
