ECULLY, France – Groupe Seb reported on Tuesday annual sales of over €8 billion, +16.1% and +15.5% LFL*. Q4 sales: €2,488m, +11.7% and +8.8 LFL. ORFA margin is estimated at 10%. Thierry de La Tour d’Artaise, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Groupe SEB, stated:
“Groupe SEB delivered in 2021 a record year, with revenue above €8 billion. This exceptional growth, better-than-expected and exceeding €1 billion, was driven by the remarkable dynamics of the Consumer business and that of Professional Coffee, which confirmed its recovery. It enables us to offset headwinds and to reach an Operating margin from activity of 10%.
I am very proud of these achievements. I would like to share this success with all our Groupe SEB teams and thank them for their mobilization throughout this complex period.
Now more than ever, our strategic choices prove relevant and allow us to be confident in our ability to outperform the global market in all our business activities.”
* LFL: on a like-for-like basis (= organic)
General comments on Groupe SEB sales
With 2021 sales significantly above €8 billion, Groupe SEB has set a new record in its history.
This better-than-expected performance is all the more remarkable in the context of a general environment still disrupted by a persistent health crisis and unprecedented supply-chain pressures.
Groupe SEB generated 2021 revenue of €8,059m, up 16.1% vs. 2020, with like-for-like growth of 15.5% (or +€1,079m). Currency and scope effects were limited over the year, coming out at -0.3% (-€22m) and +0.9% (+€62m, related to StoreBound*) respectively. Organic growth was fueled by the robust expansion of the Consumer business, still driven by e-commerce, and a return to positive dynamic of the Professional business.
Compared with 2019, which stands as a more normal base of comparison than the atypical 2020 fiscal year -owing to COVID-19-, annual sales grew by 9.6%.
The Consumer business posted a great performance. 2021 sales totaled €7,431m, up 16.7% vs. 2020, of which +16% LFL, reflecting:
an excellent first half (organic growth of +29.6%), against the backdrop of vigorous demand for small domestic equipment and low 2020 comparatives;
persistently strong sales momentum in the second half -despite a much higher base effect in 2020- with notably a fourth quarter at +11.3%, including organic growth of 8.4%. The latter was brisker than expected and partly supported by late orders. It is also worth mentioning that reported sales growth for the closing quarter stands at +14.3% vs. 2019.
All of the regions and product lines contributed to this robust performance.
E-commerce remained a key growth driver throughout the year. It is backed by the ongoing fast development of all online sales channels (global and regional pure players, market places, click & mortar, DTC sites, etc.). In fact, its weight in revenue continued to increase in most of the markets.
Solid demand was reflected in high-quality sales in a soft promotional environment. It was conducive to an improved product mix as well as the ongoing international expansion of the company’s flagship products (cookware, electrical multicookers, oil-less fryers, grills, fully-automatic coffee machines, versatile vacuum cleaners, etc.). In parallel, we have been led to implement price increases to mitigate the effects of inflation of raw materials and sea freight, as well as of weakening currencies such as the Brazilian real or the Turkish lira.
The Professional business (Coffee at ~90%) generated annual revenue of €628m, up 10.2% LFL. Thus, in 2021, the division returned to positive momentum after a very difficult 2020 financial year, marked by the near-total shutdown in the hospitality and catering sector owing to the health crisis. The sharp rebound in sales in the second and third quarters (around +35% vs. 2020) was supported by the reopening of cafés and restaurants and the roll-out of specific contracts. It was followed over the last three months by organic growth of 14.4%, driven more by core business than one-off contracts. Such deals made a substantial contribution to full-year sales growth of machines vs. 2020, however without returning to the exceptional levels of 2019.
*Acquired in July 2020, consolidated from August 1, 2020
