Calida completes Erlich Textil acquisition as sales, profits rise in 2021
Nicola Mira
Swiss group Calida
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The operation was completed in February, and through it Calida has taken control of a brand specialised in sustainable underwear, whose products are manufactured in Europe using high-quality textiles and organic, recyclable fabrics. Sarah Grohé and Benjamin Sadler, founders of Cologne-based Erlich Textil, will continue to run the company, which has 21 employees and generated a revenue of €7 million in 2021.
The acquisition allows Calida not only to strengthen its position in the sustainable fashion segment, but in the e-tail channel too, since Erlich Textil is a digital pure player that targets a young clientèle, selling exclusively via its own e-shop.
In the last two years, Calida has sold sportswear brands EiderK2OxbowMilletLafuma
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Calida was founded in 1941 in Sursee (near Lucerne), where its head offices are still located. The group has over 1,000 employees worldwide and 80% of its output is made in-house in Hungary. Fabrics from Switzerland, Austria and southern Germany account for 75% of the output. Calida closed 2021 with a revenue of CHF298 million (€283.7 million), equivalent to a 19.2% rise net of currency effects, as the group stated in a press release published in the international financial media.
In 2021, Calida’s adjusted operating income was worth a record-breaking CHF24.3 million (€23.1 million), approximately 43% higher than in 2020, with an EBIT margin of 8.1%, higher than forecasts and 6.8% above the previous year.
Calida’s online sales grew by 26.7% to CHF80.2 million (€76.4 million), accounting for 27% of the group’s total sales. All of the group’s brands recorded positive performances, growing in double digits and exceeding their pre-pandemic revenue levels: Calida generated sales worth CHF152.7 million (€145.4 million), up by 12.8%; Aubade
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These results have led the board of directors to recommend a 25% increase in the group’s ordinary dividend, to CHF1.00 per share (€0.95), for the next shareholders’ meeting, scheduled in April.
Finally, the Calida group stated in the press release that, in future, at least 50% of its normalized cash flow will be distributed to shareholders, and the pay-out will be regularly increased each year.