Clas Ohlson three-month report 2016/17

First quarter

  · Sales amounted to 1,763 MSEK (1,770), up 2% in local currencies
  · Operating profit amounted to 75 MSEK (106)
  · Profit after tax amounted to 58 MSEK (81)
  · Earnings per share amounted to 0.91 SEK (1.27)
  · Cash flow from operating activities amounted to 16 MSEK (170)
  · The store portfolio was expanded by 8 new stores (net) and Clas Ohlson
opened its first store in the German market
  · The Annual Report and Sustainability Report for 2015/16 were published
  · As previously announced, the Board of Directors proposes that a dividend of
5.75 SEK per share (5.25) be approved by the Annual General Meeting

Events after the end of the reporting period

  · Sales in August increased by 9% to 665 MSEK (611), up 10% in local
currencies
  · Agreement signed for a new store in the Mercato Shopping Mall in Dubai

The 2016/17 financial year comprises the period from 1 May 2016 to 30 April
2017.
CEO’s comments

Negative effects from currency but continued positive development

We are continuing to strengthen our position but this quarter we saw a slightly
weaker sales trend than we are used to. Earnings were impacted by lower growth
as well as the weaker NOK, and start-up costs for our launch in Germany.

Following a record-breaking quarter in the preceding year, we noted a slightly
lower growth in the first quarter due to factors including negative calendar
effects and exchange-rate effects. We increased sales in the quarter by 2 per
cent in local currencies to 1,763 MSEK. However, the second quarter is off to a
favourable start with sales growth in August of a full 10 per cent in local
currencies, with a particularly strong performance in the Nordic markets.

NOK remains challenging

As expected, the weaker NOK resulted in a negative earnings trend for the
quarter. We will work to balance the effects of the trend in NOK over time
similar to our successful measures to offset the effects of the significantly
stronger USD. As previously announced, we also incurred start-up costs for our
launch in the German market that impacted our earnings for the quarter.

Next step in development of offering and international expansion

During the summer months, we continued to update our store network by opening
four new stores, adapting three stores to our new store concept and
restructuring our store network in the UK as planned. We also saw a positive
trend in our offering to corporate customers and strengthened online shopping,
which reported healthy growth figures. However, perhaps the most important event
of the quarter was the opening of our store in central Hamburg. The reception
thus far has been fantastic and it is clear that there is widespread interest in
our offering among German consumers. In just a few days we will open our second
store in Hamburg in the Altona city district. We can also announce today that we
will open our second franchise store in Dubai in the Mercato Shopping Mall in
the autumn, which we are very much looking forward to.

A strong sales development in August gives us a good start in our second
quarter. We have filled our sales channels with many new products and are now
entering the autumn brimming with energy.

Klas Balkow, President and CEO of Clas Ohlson AB

Press and analyst conference

A press and analyst conference will be held on Wednesday, 7 September at 08:30
a.m. at Clas Ohlson’s store at Drottninggatan 53 in Stockholm, Sweden, and can
also be followed on about.clasohlson.com or www.financialhearings.com

This is information that Clas Ohlson AB (publ) is obliged to make public
pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation and the Securities Markets Act. The
information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact
person set out above, at 7:00 am CET on 7 September 2016.
For more information, please contact:
Sara Kraft Westrell, Director of Information and Investor Relations, phone +46
247 649 13
Clas Ohlson was founded in 1918 as a mail order business based in Insjön,
Sweden. Today, the company offers products and services for the small everyday
practical problems, in six countries via its over 200 stores and online. Clas
Ohlson offers a wide range of affordable products in five product areas:
Hardware, Electrical, Home, Multimedia and Leisure. The company is listed on
Nasdaq Stockholm, has sales of over 7.5 billion SEK and more than 4,700
employees. Visit Clas Ohlson at www.clasohlson.com