Fourlis sees growth ahead, weighs up rising energy costs

Retailer Fourlis sees an increase in sales for 2022 from all its activities, while net profitability will be clearly affected by increased energy costs and will show a more moderate increase. As the Group's Chief Financial Officer, George Alevizos, says to Business Daily, high inflation and the resulting surge in energy costs are factors affecting the group's planning for this year.

In any case, Fourlis' management is in the process of applying to the Hellenic Capital Market Commission for the IPO of its subsidiary Trade Estates, despite recent weakness in the stock market.

Therefore, the share sale of Trade Estates will most likely take place towards the end of 2022 or possibly at the beginning of 2023. Moreover, the company focuses on investing in commercial parks and logistics centers, aiming to serve both the needs of the retail chains developed by the group and the interest of new, foreign chains that will enter the Greek market.

Furthermore, Alevizos points out that the locations that the first stores of the Holland & Barrett chain will potentially open at have already been found, and they are expected to start operating in the last quarter of 2022. Simultaneously with the opening of the first stores, the operation of the chain's online store will be launched, which, according to Alevizos, can contribute up to 50% to Holland & Barrett's sales, as a very important channel.

At the same time, the group's investment plan for the Intersport chain is in progress, with the available funds reaching 10 million euros for the renovation of its network of stores this year. The relevant works have already been completed in 22 stores, and improvements in more than 40 locations in Greece, Romania and Bulgaria will start by the end of the year. The group also invests in the omnichannel customer experience, upgrading the infrastructure in terms of Intersport's e-commerce, as well.

A similar approach applies for IKEA, with smaller stores and the digital channel boosting revenues. However, the issue of shortages in specific chain codes remains a concern with the percentage of goods in short supply estimated at about 13%, according to Alevizos. He, however, points out that the issue will be resolved later this year, as IKEA International has taken appropriate initiatives that unblock production and will also normalize transport.

At the end of 2023, a new IKEA point is expected to be ready in Patras, in early 2024 in Heraklion, while the target for the Hellinikon point is 2025, provided that the overall development there will remain within the predetermined schedule.

The group estimates that the value of the furniture market in our country is not reflected in the current data, which place it at 900 million euros. The actual value amounts approximately to 1.5 billion euros, an amount that is expected to show in the official data within the next 3-4 years.