• 2020 Q1 Sales at €50.8m, down -2.7% vs. Q1 2019 (€52.2m)
• Activity impacted by production delays and postponed projects due to the Covid-19 crisis
• Order entries up by +51.6% at €71.8m
• Rolling 12-month Sales and Order Entries up by +15.7% and +38.2%
• Return to growth expected in H2
• Contingency plan to control costs and limit the impact of the Covid-19 crisis

Thierry Gadou, SES-imagotag Group Chairman and CEO commented: “In these challenging times, I would like to extend my gratitude to our teams, our partners and our customers who are ensuring the continuity of essential services around the world.  Our top priority is and will continue to be to protect the health and safety of all those who are assuring the smooth maintenance and operations of grocery stores and pharmacies under these unprecedented conditions.

Our growth has been impacted in the first quarter by the Covid-19 crisis, which affected our production capacities and caused a slowdown and delays in projects.

However, our order entries remained dynamic until the implementation of lockdown measures, and they recorded solid growth that reflects the growing importance of digital transformation for retailers. This crisis will reinforce this sense of urgency, beyond the operational paralysis it caused in the short term.

Production in China is now back to normal, but activity will stay impacted in Q2 due to accumulated delays and a slowdown in projects. In this tough context, the Group has put in place a strong contingency plan to prevent health risks and to control costs as well as investments to preserve our financial situation.

Thanks to the gradual lifting of lockdowns, we expect a return to growth in H2.”

Sales

Sales in Q1 were €50.8m, slightly down (-2.7%) from Q1 2019. Over the first three months of the year, the Group’s activity has been impacted by production delays and postponed projects due to the Covid-19 crisis, which are reflected both in the sales figures for France and internationally.

The rolling 12-month sales however are still up +15.7%, confirming the Group’s positive long-term momentum.

Order entries

Order entries stood at €71.8m, up by +51.6% following a record 2019 year, thanks to solid International performance.

Outlook and Covid-19 crisis management

The Group’s production capacity came back to normal in April, as anticipated, even if some delays will still occur. Global demand is affected in all geographies and industries due to lockdown measures and many stores’ closures. Several orders and projects have been postponed without dates. Yet, the Group should be able to maintain a slightly decreasing activity in H1 before seeing a return to growth in H2.

In this still unpredictable climate, SES-imagotag has introduced a contingency plan to protect its employees, partners and customers, and imposed strict control over costs and investments in order to maintain operational expenses at the level of 2019 and pursue the profitability improvement efforts.

The Group is also actively working with its financial partners to preserve its financial capacity and the resources for future growth.

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