Emmi Halbjahresrückblick CEO 26 Aug 2020 DEU

🎥 Aug 25, 2020 📺 Emmi ⏱ 5m 👁 629 views

About Ricarda Demarmels

In an August 2020 half-year review, Emmi CEO Ricarda Demarmels reported that the company had delivered "good results" despite the challenging environment caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. She stated that organic growth reached 2 percent, with total growth of 6.6 percent, and that earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) had risen slightly. Demarmels attributed the performance to the company's strategy and the efforts of employees, noting that the crisis had demonstrated the strategy's effectiveness even in difficult times. Demarmels acknowledged significant disruptions beneath the surface of the positive results, saying that "the gastronomy came to a standstill" in markets such as the United States and Switzerland, leading to "almost zero demand" overnight, while demand for basic products surged. She noted that the company had adapted quickly, with strong performance in Switzerland, Chile, Brazil, and in segments like Italian products and organic goods, while regions heavily reliant on food service, such as North America and Spain, suffered. Looking ahead, Demarmels said she expected the second half of 2020 to remain "very volatile," but expressed optimism that Emmi could generate "slight growth" and end the year with a satisfactory result.

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Transcript (9 segments)

Interviewer0:05

Emmi presented its half-year results for 2020 today. How satisfied are you with the business performance?

Ricarda Demarmels0:12

I am very pleased and grateful that we published good results today. This certainly did not come easily in this crisis; it required a great effort from the employees. What is encouraging is that the crisis has shown that the strategy also works in bad times. And what is also encouraging is that we were able to deliver organic growth. That means we grew by 2 percent in the companies we already had a year ago, and overall we grew by 6.6 percent. And this growth, coupled with good market performance, led to a slight increase in profit at the EBIT level. Net profit was slightly lower, mainly due to increased minority interests and partly due to financing costs. So all in all, one can say that in this environment we delivered a good result.

Interviewer1:10

Despite the difficult environment, Emmi was able to increase sales and grow organically. Does Corona leave no trace on Emmi?

Ricarda Demarmels1:18

No, of course not at all. Beneath the surface of these good results, we had major disruptions. As everyone knows, the food service industry practically came to a standstill, especially in the US but also in Switzerland. From one day to the next, demand dropped to almost zero. On the other hand, we know that basic products were in extremely high demand, and we were very well positioned in various markets. But we also saw in the industry that we suffered a bit. That means we sold somewhat lower-value products, and we had to absorb that as well, along with some cost measures.

Interviewer1:55

How does the balance look in the individual regions?

Ricarda Demarmels2:02

Yes, overall it is pleasing with growth of 2 percent, and it breaks down as follows: Switzerland grew by 3.8 percent, as strong as it has been in a long time. Of course, it had less food service business, but was very strong in retail and very strong in the basic assortment. We did a great job there, because it is not a given that we were ready to deliver and really provided all that milk, cream, and butter as before. On the other hand, we have the Americas, which is the counterpart. There we are much stronger in supplying the food service industry, and that suffered. So North America, the US, suffered a bit, Spain suffered a bit, but we did very well in Tunisia, quite well in France, and excellently in Chile and especially in Brazil. Mexico also suffered a bit, resulting in a minus 1 percent. That is an overall good result, but of course not the growth we want from that region. Then in Europe, we had overall growth of 2.1 percent, balanced. That means in niches we did well, so where goat cheese for food service goes, we also suffered a bit. We did quite well with Italian cheeses, excellently with Onken, excellently with Chrysler with organic products, and overall it gives a good result.

We have not only worked well with the numbers, but we have also made very good progress in strategy implementation. For example, in the sustainability strategy, we already produce 87 percent of the milk in Switzerland according to the Swiss Milk Green standard, and accordingly sustainably. That is a pleasing achievement.

Interviewer4:04

What do you expect from Emmi in the second half of the year?

Ricarda Demarmels4:06

First of all, we have proven that we can deliver in such uncertain times, that we can react very quickly and adapt to new situations. And I also believe that the second half will remain very volatile. No one knows exactly how demand will develop, whether markets will reopen and recover, or whether the opposite will happen, meaning further restrictions. But I am optimistic that, given how we are positioned, we can generate slight growth in the second half, and that would then result in a pleasing outcome for the full year.