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Double-digit Sustainable Growth: LENET Group's first year

Growth of +15.5% and transformation into a Benefit Corporation: 2021 results

31.03.2022

One year after its foundation, LENET Group, a family of companies created as an evolution of THUN Spa, looks back with satisfaction at the results of the first 12 months and confirms the direction taken with the creation of a new omnichannel business model: thanks to its network model, in fact, the group integrates retail, e-commerce, marketplace, logistics and digital platforms in an innovative synergy between B2B and B2C.

LENET Group includes a series of premium B2C brands - THUN, Teddy Friends, La Porcellana Bianca, Rituali Domestici, Rose&Tulipani - Luxpets, the first high-end marketplace for the pet industry, and Connecthub Logistics & Digital, a 4.0 provider of distribution, system integration and business intelligence services.

LENET GROUP IS A BENEFIT CORPORATION - The group continues its corporate path of social and environmental responsibility with a view to the stakeholder economy, having incorporated the transformation into a  Benefit Company into its bylaws, i.e. adopting the company's double purpose of PROFIT-PEOPLE-PLANET from January 2022: with the amendment to its official bylaws, Lenet makes a concrete commitment to the planet, the people and the communities in which it operates. This important development, strongly desired by the Management and the Board of Directors, strengthens the Group's path of responsibility and resolutely moves towards B Corp certification.

2021: KEY RESULTS

In 2021, the Group reaches 127.8 million in consolidated turnover, marking a growth of +15.5% over 2020, sufficient to return to the pre-pandemic range.

The growth result, despite the Covid effect in 2021 still being particularly noticeable, confirms the path announced since the Group's establishment in the direction of an omnichannel and international diversification of the distribution footprint.

In 2021, four new digital business lines were opened with the dotcom sites of the Group's new brands, and the second half of the year saw the go live of the luxpets.com project, the first luxury marketplace in the pet world. Overall, this was an important step forward in terms of the synergy of the Retail, Logistics and Digital business units, which also enabled a 20.6% increase in the value of fundraising for the Fondazione Lene Thun Onlus in favour of the permanent services provided in paediatric oncologies. 

Growth in international markets was also good, with +51.8%, despite being smaller than the domestic market.

The economic result (EBITDA ADJ) is back to pre-covid levels with an increase of +370bps compared to LY thanks to a careful policy of management efficiencies and a significant improvement in company productivity in all areas.

The trend of improvement on the Group's NFP from 2019 is confirmed with a further improvement of about 15% compared to 2020. A good result achieved thanks to the planning and control of inventory levels, especially in this particularly turbulent distribution phase, and more generally with an excellent improvement in credit and debit flows.

The year 2021 also marks an excellent return to cash flow generation (FCF) while NFP/EBITDA is within pre-covid safe levels with further prospects for improvement in the coming years.

UNITABLE: NEW BRANDS RUNNING AFTER ACQUISITION - The results of Unitable Srl - post M&A in January 2021 - confirmed the business model assumptions with FY growth of around +60%. This figure is very encouraging and reinforces the Group's strategy of diversification and positioning as an international leader in the world of home decor and premium tableware.

The Board of Directors welcomed the highlights on the 2021 result by approving the management's proposal for an extraordinary disbursement of the bonus system, which at LENET GROUP involves the entire company population.

"The year 2021 represents a further evolutionary step in Lenet Group's growth path that we are very pleased about," commented Francesco Pandolfi, Group CEO Lenet Group. The transformation into an SpA SB (Benefit Company), together with the economic and financial results achieved, is the basis for continuing with vigour and confidence into the future, even considering the market turbulence and the post-pandemic macro-economic scenarios. We believe, as the Board of Directors and Executive Committee, that the path we have taken is a successful one and reflects the expectations of our brands' positioning, profitability and omnichannel diversification of our businesses towards strengthening our Retail - Logistics - Digital leadership. We renew our confidence in the entire management with encouragement to continue with energy and passion on the road taken".