Financial Reports

Delivering product leadership and increasing our ambition for the future

In 2022, Stiga successfully navigated a rapidly changing environment, adapting to ensure business continuity and performance, while strengthening the Group’s technology leadership. We encountered significant uncertainties in a market that presented more and bigger challenges than ever before. These included the increasingly widespread economic downturn, global inflation, sluggish demand and geopolitical uncertainties due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. Stiga managed to overcome these unprecedented circumstances by investing in research and development – creating value with our disruptive products to enrich the everyday lives of our customers. We emerged stronger, having introduced innovative technologies and entered new categories, driving revenue. Looking back on an eventful 12 months, I’m pleased with the progress we’ve made together in such demanding circumstances while remaining focused on our strategic imperatives.

Delivering a legacy of innovation

In the changing competitive landscape, it’s more important than ever to drive the market with leading-edge designed products. I’m proud of the strategic efforts we’ve made to push technological development in our industry and to continue our digital evolution. More than ever, in 2022 we’ve capitalised on consumer-driven innovations and core areas – such as battery-powered products, robotics and connectivity – that demonstrate our tech credentials and our ability to add value for our customers.

The cornerstones of this strategy have been the introduction of disruptive new energy-saving electric devices that ensure battery-operated options throughout the entire range; strengthening the presence in new categories, such as the handheld segment; and consolidating the Company’s leadership role in its core segment, products for mowing the lawn. We’re committed to remaining at the forefront of these developments, leading the industry with the best solutions, and have created in-house digital capabilities to take full advantage of them.

In burgeoning areas that are shaping future lifestyles – such as AI, IoT and robotics – we’ll continue to leverage our robust innovations and capabilities to tackle new challenges with new ideas. Our objective is to increase the market share of our battery and intelligent products as part of the garden care of the future. We’re ready to deliver change, balancing our competitiveness with smart, intuitive solutions and steering the industry towards renewable energy sources. 

Looking to the future

Stiga has proven that we’re able to effectively balance our long-term imperatives and short-term operating priorities while delivering solid results. The Group has a robust financial position and over the next four years we plan to maximise our significant growth potential. Our strategic business plan includes a new breed of consumer-driven solutions and technologies, more digitalisation of our products and solid investment in marketing innovation, as well as the development of new distribution channels, all of which root our business in sustainability.

With this bold project we want to leave a positive mark, showing the utmost respect for the environment, the planet and its people. We are very optimistic about what lies ahead. We’ll continue to follow our performance improvement plan rigorously, building on what we’ve achieved so far. We are actively managing our financial position to maintain a robust balance sheet, as we navigate the uncertainty created by the current geopolitical situation. With this in mind, we feel well prepared for any scenario, while at the same time continuing to invest resources in our long-term strategic imperatives.

Thank you for your continued support and trust. We are looking forward to a very successful 2023. 

Sean Robinson

CEO

The main and most significant results of Stiga in 2022 refer to

-EBITDA was Euro +2.6 million vs. 2021 (+4%), thanks to higher sales and pricing, which more than compensated for components, freight and operating expenses increases

-Net Financial Position (-40% vs. 2021) was affected by higher Receivables and by the strategic decision to secure in advance critical products and components in presence of difficult supply chain conditions, resulting in higher levels of stock.

–The countries served in the world increased by 5, confirming our ability to enlarge the Export business.

-Average employees increased by 74 Full Time Equivalent (+5% vs. 2021), mainly in Italy and China.

-Capex at Euro 17.4 million is Euro 7.5 million lower than record 2021 spending. R&D investments allowed the completion of major projects like autonomous robots, Gyro and electric tractors.

Looking ahead with purpose

The uncertainty of 2022 highlighted the resilience of Stiga Group and also underlined even further the urgent need for positive change in terms of sustainability. Our strategic objectives go beyond operational and financial performance. At Stiga we understand the crucial role our Company plays for our stakeholders, society and the environment. As we move closer to the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals deadline, we consider sustainability central to everything we do and put a great emphasis on understanding the impact of our activities on people and the planet. In 2022, we continued to advance our approach to responsible investing by driving actions that integrate sustainability more deeply into our business, inspiring our customers and partners to do the same.

As a leading design innovator in the garden product sector, Stiga Group is committed to finding new solutions that bring real demonstrable change to our products and their impact on the environment, using more sustainable power sources and materials, improving recyclability and helping consumers create, nurture and enjoy their piece of nature with smart solutions. Our double-digit financial growth in 2022 showed that business success and an environmental approach can go hand in hand, empowering us to continue to be a force for positive change. Our biggest efforts have gone into our Products, People and Processes: we’ve invested in the safety and well-being of our people and the environmental efficiency of our equipment and operations. Our success is based on our people’s talent and dedication, resulting in 100 years of know-how in the science of grass and tech expertise.

In 2022, we promoted initiatives aimed at increasing flexibility in the workplace and giving back to the communities where our businesses are located. When it comes to products, we’re dedicated to developing innovative technologies that minimise our environmental footprint, thanks to a broad range of electric machines in every category and by improving the circularity of our products’ life cycles. We have also invested further to make our production processes more sustainable and efficient, and to improve the durability and quality of our tools. We are investing in energy reduction measures too: production plants are moving to renewable electricity with plans to increase the percentage of self-produced energy. As we look ahead to 2023, our togetherness will remain vitally important as we navigate new challenges in a continually changing world. We are committed to a deeper assessment of our ESG opportunities and our impact on the environment, producing facts and data that will strengthen our strategy for improvement. This responsibility is at the heart of Stiga and how we seek to be a force for good for our customers and stakeholders. Our passion to inspire and help consumers to take care of their gardens provides a common thread that will guide our vision and our strategy.

 

Thank you to all our partners and stakeholders for their continued support and commitment. We look forward to continuing our journey in 2023 and beyond.

Rainer Schmueckle – Chairman