Swedish sportswear brand Björn Borg reported net sales of SEK 285.1 million (€24.6m) for the third quarter of the financial year, representing an increase of 8.8 percent including currency effects and 10.4 percent excluding these effects, compared to the same period last year. The gross profit margin was 52.1 percent (down from 52.6 last year). On a currency-neutral basis, the gross profit margin was 51.2 percent, a decrease of 1.4 percentage points. Operating profit amounted to SEK 42.0 million (€3.6m), an increase of 2.8 percent. Currency-neutral operating profit was SEK 41.1 million (€3.5m), an increase of 0.5 percent.
The main growth during the quarter stemmed from the company’s two strategic focus categories, Footwear and Sports Apparel, presenting a year-on-year growth of 29 percent and 25 percent, respectively. It is worth mentioning that the Footwear category showed an impressive 110 percent growth year-on-year via its own e-commerce, a positive sign given that it constitutes a strategically important sales channel. Among other product categories, Underwear witnessed a slight decrease year-on-year (-1%), while Bags showed a temporary decline of 14 percent year-on-year following a strong development during H1/24.
Björn Borgs ow e-com continues to grow
Upon reviewing the channel mix for Q3/24, the company’s own e-commerce continues to show solid momentum, as evidenced by the 32 percent growth rate year-on-year. Net sales for own e-commerce increased by 31.5 percent to SEK 49.4 million (€4.3m), while sales for own e-commerce and e-tailers amounted to SEK 119.7 million (€10.3m), an increase of 25.1 percent.
Björn Borg’s largest channel, wholesale, grew by 5 percent year-on-year, while external e-tailers witnessed a growth of 21 percent compared to the same quarter last year, driven by robust performance in the German and Dutch markets. Own retail stores experienced a decline of 5 percent as a consequence of store closures, but when adjusting for these closures, the development would have been slightly positive (1%). Distributors regained ground from the weaker performance in H1/24, marked by year-on-year growth of 31 percent in Q3/24.
Strong Growth in the German Market
Regarding sales geography, the German market stands out positively, with an impressive growth of 44 percent year-on-year, primarily driven by strong sell-through at major retailers. The company’s largest market, Sweden, declined by 3 percent year-on-year, with own e-com contributing positively with a 34 percent growth. At the same time, sales to wholesalers hampered the overall growth in the market. Regarding the other markets, the Netherlands grew by 5 percent, Finland by 29 percent, Belgium by 23 percent and Denmark by 32 percent.
CEO of Björn Borg, Henrik Bunge, on the company’s results in the German market:
“Our chosen growth market, Germany, continued to develop very positively. During the quarter, we increased our presence with growth of 44 percent.”
