THE PERIOD JANUARY – MARCH 2024

  • Revenues (Jan - Mar): SEK 995 thousand (SEK 2,269 thousand on corresponding period 2023)
  • EBITDA: SEK –3,132 thousand (SEK –4,534 thousand)
  • EBIT: SEK –3,693 thousand (SEK –5,091 thousand)
  • Net result: SEK –3,967 thousand (SEK –5,105 thousand)
  • Earnings per share (EPS) -0.15 SEK / share

SIGNIFICANT EVENTS DURING JANUARY – MARCH 2024

  • Arctic Blue Gin Northern Lights premium package won WorldStar 2024 award in WorldStar Competition hosted by World Packaging Organisation
  • Arctic Blue Beverages’ Navy Strength Gin was awarded with a silver medal in the category “Finnish Gins“ at UISGE 2024
  • Arctic Blue Beverages AB (“Arctic Blue Beverages” or “the Company”) entered into loan agreements amounting to a total of EUR 350,000

SIGNIFICANT EVENTS AFTER PERIOD

  • The Company’s product portfolio was awarded multiple awards at the prestigious San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2024. Arctic Blue Gin Rose secured a Double Gold medal, while the company’s flagship product, Arctic Blue Gin, was awarded Gold. Additionally, Arctic Blue Laku, a liquorice liqueur crafted in collaboration with Kouvolan Lakritsi, received a Silver medal
  • The Company launched two versions of the popular drink invented for the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, namely Arctic Blue Long Drink Grapefruit and Arctic Blue Long Drink Grapefruit Zero Sugar
  • The Company launched Arctic Blue Gin Cask Vintage 2023, adding a new flavour to its award-winning portfolio. The product is an amber-hued gin that has matured for two years in American white oak barrels
  • The Company entered into loan agreements amounting to a total of EUR 150,000

REPORT HIGHLIGHTS

FOCUSING ON THE LONG-TERM GAME
“Challenging times require patience and focus on the long-term game. In Finland, the cornerstone of this is our HoReCa strategy. During the first quarter of 2024 we have focused on activating our portfolio in previously existing and newly signed chain accounts in Finland. Arctic Blue brand and product awareness has increased a lot through this, and we have witnessed a significant increase in sales in HoReCa. It has been proven that in the long run the HoReCa success will have a positive impact also in the Alko sales. Therefore, we are optimistic that we will be able to fight against the declining premium market during 2024.

In export markets our updated strategy and pricing model is gaining traction, and we believe that we will see both new customers and the activation of existing customers during the first half of the year. It is still too early to reveal more about this, other than to say that the updated strategy seems to work and meet the challenges of difficult economic times.

In Finland, Arctic Blue Beverages’ Navy Strength Gin was awarded with a silver medal in the category “Finnish Gins“ at UISGE 2024. Internationally, Arctic Blue Beverages product packaging was awarded in the WorldStar 2024 competition, where Arctic Blue Gin’s “Northern Lights” package secured a win on global level with the WorldStar 2024 award.

During the first quarter of 2024, our sales revenue decreased by 55% compared to the corresponding period last year. The principal factor contributing to this downturn was an unfavourable sales trend evident in Finland, the travel retail sector and export sales, where we experienced a significant decline in sales. Due to challenging economic times consumers continue buying cheaper products and this can be seen across all our sales channels.

The start of 2024 has been quieter than we had anticipated, but we are focused on the long game and building its foundations. The implementation of the HoReCa strategy is progressing well in Finland, and sales there have increased significantly. On the long run we believe this will be a key to our success in our home market. Abroad our adjusted our strategy is also working now, and we believe that we will see improvements already during the first half of the year.

During the first half of 2024, our most significant product launch will be Arctic Blue Long Drink, which will bring the Arctic Blue brand into a completely new and highly competitive long drink category in Finland. We will also introduce a new gin to our award-winning portfolio, Arctic Blue Gin Cask Vintage 2023. The big focus will also be on progressing with our Arctic Blue Distillery at Kulttuurikasarmi in Helsinki with NoHo Partners Plc, which is planned to open during summer 2024”, says Valtteri Eroma, CEO of Arctic Blue Beverages.

Arctic Blue Beverages AB has published its January - March 2024 interim report on the Company’s website today. The interim report is available to download on the Company’s website www.arcticbluebeverages.com/investors/financial-reports/. A PDF version of the interim report is attached to this press release.

For more information please contact

Valtteri Eroma, CEO
Phone: +358 44 531 3950
Email: valtteri.eroma@arcticbluebeverages.com

Petri Hirvonen, CFO
Phone: +358 40 571 0834
Email: petri.hirvonen@arcticbluebeverages.com

The company’s Certified Adviser is Eminova Fondkommission AB | +46 8-684 211 10 | adviser@eminova.se

About Us

Arctic Blue Beverages AB is a Nordic beverage company whose best-known products are the multi-award winning Arctic Blue Gin, Arctic Blue Gin Rose, Arctic Blue Laku and the world’s first dairy-free gin-based oat liqueur, Arctic Blue Oat. The company invests heavily into international export and its products are sold in Finland, Sweden, Japan, Australia and more than a dozen other countries. For more information, visit Arctic Blue Beverages webpage https://arcticbluebeverages.com

This information is information that Arctic Blue Beverages is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact persons set out above, at 2024-05-15 09:00 EEST.

Attachments

Arctic Blue Beverages AB Q1 Report 2024

© Modular Finance, source Nordic Press Releases