29 March 2024, 00:21
By Furniture News Jun 09, 2017

Another record year for Carl Hansen & Son

Carl Hansen & Son has released its 2016 annual report, showing strong performance, with revenue increasing for the seventh consecutive year. The company also expects to invest almost DKK 100 million (13.5 million EUR) in new production facilities and equipment in 2017 to meet rising demand in all key markets. The increasing demand supports the company’s objective of reaching revenue of DKK 500 million (67.3 million EUR) in 2017 and DKK 650 million (87.4 million EUR) in 2019.

Carl Hansen & Son is presenting the best financial statements in the company’s 109-year history, marking the seventh consecutive year of strong growth. The strong showing is the result of an ambitious five-year growth plan, which aims to achieve revenue of DKK 500 million (67.3 million EUR) in 2017 and DKK 650 million (87.4 million EUR) in 2019.

The increasing demand for Danish designer furniture has necessitated that Carl Hansen & Son develop a growing presence in its export markets. The company is therefore opening new flagship stores around the world, in addition to the showroom opened in New York in February of this year.

Carl Hansen & Son is also centralising all its operations in a 37,000-square-metre complex in Gelsted on the Danish island of Funen during 2017, having sold its 6000-square-metre production facility in Aarup, Denmark.

Positive financial statements

Revenue rose by 14% compared to 2015 to DKK 422 million (56.7 million EUR), reflecting Carl Hansen & Son’s maintenance of its planned growth rate. The pre-tax profit of DKK 27.4 million (3.7 million EUR) is also in line with expectations and seen as very satisfactory.

“In 2014, we set an ambitious goal of achieving DKK 500 million (67.3 million EUR) in revenue in 2017, and the 2016 results put this well within reach. In addition to increasing revenue, we are achieving the efficiency goals that ensure that our bottom line moves in step. This means that we now hold a strong position in a highly competitive international market,” says Knud Erik Hansen, CEO of Carl Hansen & Son.

“Our exports are on par with last year, while the domestic market has contributed stronger growth this year in both the retail and contract markets. Next year, we expect exports to outshine the domestic market.”

Carl Hansen & Son hired 39 new employees in 2016 in response to rising demand. These hires are spread throughout production, with major additions to the sales force as well.

Market developments in 2016

Carl Hansen & Son has seen advances in all key markets. The domestic market, Scandinavia, the UK, Italy, Spain and Japan are doing particularly well.

The 2016 relaunch of Hans J. Wegner’s earlier design classic, the CH22 chair, proved a remarkable success, as have iconic classics such as Ole Wanscher’s Colonial Chair and Hans J. Wegner’s CH25 lounge chair, which saw 25% growth. Hans J. Wegner’s classic Elbow Chair (CH20) has also been a growth engine, with a 33% increase in revenue.

2016 marked the first time that Carl Hansen & Son presented designs by Poul Kjærholm – including Kjærholm’s iconic Professor and Student Desks – and a new variant of Ejner Larsen and Aksel Bender Madsen’s Metropolitan Chair. New collaborations included Danish designer Naja Utzon Popov’s exclusive rug collection, and the internationally renowned Austrian design trio EOOS’s new additions to the Embrace Series.

Outlook for 2017

The strong demand is continuing in 2017, with Q1 revenue up 16% over the same period last year. Carl Hansen & Son expects growth of DKK 78 million (10.5 million EUR) in 2017, and thus an annual revenue of DKK 500 million (67.3 million EUR). Pre-tax profit is expected to be DKK 38 million (5.1 million EUR).

Carl Hansen & Son is continuing to invest heavily in its Danish production facilities in 2017 in response to strong demand from all markets. The company has begun the renovation of 13,000-square-metre production facilities on Funen, and is purchasing new, larger production facilities. The investment is expected to total approximately DKK 100 million (13.5 million EUR).

Knud Erik Hansen explains: “The strategy for the coming years focuses on revenue of DKK 650 million (87.4 million EUR) in 2019, with a steady rise in earnings. We will also be employing many more cabinetmakers in the years ahead, as well as sales and marketing people in Denmark and abroad. Of course, we also recognise that finding the necessary professional expertise may prove challenging.”

The company saw major interest in its new products at the recent furniture fair in Milan. The relaunch of Hans J. Wegner’s CH23 chair was particularly anticipated, as its return means that all of the first designs Hans J. Wegner created for Carl Hansen & Son in 1950 are once again back in production. 

Other relaunches included classic designs like Poul Kjærholm’s first dining chair (PK1) and Ole Wanscher’s Beak Chair. Carl Hansen & Son also expanded its collaboration with Naja Utzon Popov with new rug collections, and established a new partnership with Danish designer Anker Bak, whose Rocking Nest Chair reinterprets the classic rocking chair.

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