Fredrik Tønnessen is the new CEO of Elkjøp

Fredrik Tønnessen is from today the new CEO of Elkjøp Nordic. – He is looking forward to getting on the offensive, growing and making the business more profitable.Elkjøp Nordic AS is part of Currys, a leading multinational consumer electrical and mobile retailer and services company, employing over 42,000 people in nine countries. Together we are the market leader in the UK & Ireland, throughout the Nordics and in Greece.

CEVA Logistics: three-year storage and distribution agreement with Haier Europe

CEVA Logistics obtained a 3-year contract to provide logistics and distribution services to Haier Europe. The company will be responsible for the warehousing and handling activities for both the B2B and B2C lines, dealing in particular with the entry and exit of goods, the stock management and the order preparation. CEVA Logistics will handle approximately 500,000 outgoing pieces and 500,000 incoming pieces within its 165,000 square meter logistics hub located in Somaglia (Italy), of which approximately 40,000 dedicated to Haier Europe. 

AO on the mend

Online electricals retailer AO World has hiked it annual earnings outlook for the third time in just over three months as it said cost-cutting efforts were paying off.profitability has seen a better-than-expected improvement as it drives cost savings thanks to a “resilient” customer base.Expects underlying earnings to be in the range of £37.5 million to £45 million for the full year, up from the £30 million to £40 million guided for last month.AO World slumped to a £12 million loss in its first half, with shares hammered last year following a series of profit warnings as the cost crisis hit consumer spending on white goods, and due to labour shortages and supply chain disruptionThe company started its turnaround plan with a £40 million fundraising round last summer in a bid to strengthen its balance sheet amid fears of a cash crunch.

AO has closed its loss-making German operation as part of the shake-up and has launched action to save at least £30 million a year by 2023-24 – including by recently axing senior and middle management jobs.

The firm has also ditched unprofitable products while introducing delivery charges and cutting cashback incentives to reduce the cost of sales.

Whirlpool anouce delivery surcharge for independent retailers

Whirlpool UK is planning to introduce “a nominal delivery surcharge” for all small trade units going to independent electrical retailers.

We understand that this change applies to all Whirlpool Group products, including the Hotpoint and Indesit brands. At the end of last month,
retailers received a plan update letter from Whirlpool

STATEMENT BY STANISLAS DE GRAMONT, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF GROUPE SEB:

2022, in a difficult general economic environment and after a record year in 2021, our sales were globally resilient. We are particularly pleased with our performance in China, where Supor for the first time exceeded the two-billion-euro turnover mark. However, our results were impacted by significant headwinds. In this context, the Group was once again able to demonstrate responsiveness and quickly implement effective action plans to adapt to market developments and protect its profitability.
 

At the same time, and beyond short-term imperatives, we have continued to invest in our strategic levers: product innovation, the international deployment of our champion products, the attractiveness of our brands, and the activation of all distribution channels. No truce either for our investments in our competitiveness – industrial, logistics, information systems -, which are all crucial for the future. I would like to salute and thank the unfailing commitment of all the teams, which has been essential in these achievements.

For the year 2023, visibility remains limited. Despite a first quarter that is anticipated to be down, the Group expects a gradual improvement in sales in its Consumer business, strong revenue growth in Professional sales, as well as an increase in its operating margin for the year as a whole.

We are confident in the continued development of the global market for Small Domestic Equipment and Professional Coffee, in which we continue to strengthen our presence with the recent acquisition of the La San Marco company. We remain convinced of the relevance of our economic model, which will allow us to take full advantage of strong structural demand, a source of growth opportunities for Groupe SEB. 

MediaWorld: turnover of 2.7 billion euros in fiscal year 2022 (+2.4%)

Mediaworld announces that it achieved a turnover of 2.7 billion euros (+2.4% compared to the previous year), one of the highest in the thirty-year history of the company and the best of the last ten years . Ebit stood at 26.6 million euros, up by 3.2 million (+13.7%) compared to the 2019 fiscal year (last pre-pandemic). The brand’s 2022 financial year is part of a macroeconomic framework strongly conditioned by various economic factors that have had an impact on the business: from the intensity of the war in Ukraine to the increase in the inflation rate (+8.9% on annual basis in September 2022) following the increase in the cost of energy. Furthermore, the consumer electronics market also recorded a slight contraction (-1.9% in September 2022).

Among the key factors that affected the positive performance of sales, an official note reads, the implementation of a substantial investment plan aimed at upgrading the technological infrastructures and strengthening the stores, with new openings, contributed significantly and renovations of the shops already present in the area. In particular, in 2022 MediaWorld allocated 40.2 million euros to investments, 140% more than the previous year; of these 28.5 million euros were invested for the complete renovation of 22 points of sale, the opening of 3 new stores and the second Tech Village in Rome. Approximately €11.7 million has been earmarked for IT infrastructure improvements including the implementation of the new website launched in July 2022,

Gaggenau open new stores

Gaggenau opened the first of its new concept flagships in Brussels and Amsterdam in 2022, followed by the Shanghai flagship, and now plans to expand further, with additional locations

in the United States and Canada are scheduled for summer 2023 with Vancouver and Toronto, followed by Washington DC and Houston later in the year and Sydney in 2024

Gaggenau Paris

Gaggenau is proud to announce the newly opened Flagship in Paris, France. In the iconic Saint Germain quarter Gaggenau brings the French influence to life with materials and textures inspired by the local culture and regional context.

The Flagship includes private tasting areas, wine bars and an area dedicated to the respected Gaggenau initiative, which gives the brand the opportunity to celebrate artisans and producers in the fields of culinary expertise.

Mehdi Dahmani, new COO of Fnac-Darty group

Mehdi Dahmani , 55, will take care of the commercial animation of Fnac stores in France from February 20, directly or as a franchise. He will work in collaboration with the Fnac regional sales directors.

A graduate of KEDGE Business School , Mehdi Dahmani rose through the ranks, becoming store manager Darty , then sector manager Leroy Merlin . In the early 2000s, he took care of the French development of PC World for the Dixons Retail UK group , before becoming the European director of logistics upgrading.

Mehdi Dahmani joined the PPR Group (formerly Kering) in 2007, first as Operations Director of the Surcouf site , then Director of Home Services at Fnac . He continued his rise by becoming director of quality and operations at Fnac in 2012, then director of after-sales and second-life operations. He was director of after-sales and omnichannel logistics operations for the Fnac brand since 2017.

During his career at Fnac and Fnac-Darty, Mehdi Dahmani mainly operated the digital transformation of logistics operations and modernized the after-sales service