Björn Borg has seen its full-year net profit fall 71 percent due to one-off costs. Profit after tax for the Swedish underwear company stood at SEK13.9 million (€1.6m-$2.1m) during the year ending last Dec. 31, as compared to SEK47.2 million in the previous fiscal year. Operating profit was negatively affected by SEK12 million (€1.3m-$1.8m) by delayed shipments and non-recurring items totaling around SEK26 million (€2.9m-$4.0m) related to its Chinese business and the resignation of chief executive Arthur Engel. Sales fell 9 percent to SEK499.2 million (€55.7m-$76.5m). Excluding currency effects, sales were down 8 percent. Brand sales excluding VAT decreased by 5 percent to SEK1,521 million (€169.6m-$233.0m). Excluding currency effects, the decrease was of 4 percent. Gross margin, however, improved slightly from 50.2 percent in 2012 to 50.9 percent for the full year 2013. In the fourth quarter to Dec. 31, sales declined 28 percent to SEK100.3 million (€11.2m-$15.4m). The decrease was the same excluding currency effects. Shipments with order value of about SEK25 million (€2.8m-$3.8m) were shifted from December to January 2014, affecting the operating result for the quarter by about SEK12 million (€1.3m-$1.8m). The group posted an operating loss of SEK12.5 million (€1.4m-$1.9m) in the fourth quarter of 2013, against profit of SEK15.1 million in the same period of 2012. The year 2013 was marked by continued weakness in retail demand in many of Björn Borg's markets, particularly the Netherlands. The company registered positive developments in England and Finland as well as in its own retail and e-commerce operations.

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