Natuzzi Improves Margins, Slashes Second-Quarter Loss

September 26, 2016  by Jane Chero in Financial Reports, Industry   

The company said the bottom-line improvement was due largely to a series of improvements at its factories that have reduced costs over the past year. Gross margin jumped 4.1 percentage points to 34.3%.

Worldwide sales totaled 109.9 million euros, or about $123.6 million. That was down from 119.1 million euros, or about $134 million, in the same quarter last year.

The most recent quarter’s loss was 800,000 euros, or about $900,000. That compares with a loss of 3.5 million euros, or about $3.94 million, in last year’s second quarter.

About 28% of sales came from Softaly, Natuzzi’s private-label line.

In the six months ended June 30, sales fell 4.6% to 230.6 million euros, or about $259.4 million.

The six-month net loss was 1.1 million euros, or about $1.23 million. In the first half of last year, Natuzzi lost 13.3 million euros, or about $15 million.

“The first half results for 2016 began to show improvement in our business in a number of areas. We have been able to recover our margins which speaks well to the value of our brand,” said Pasquale Natuzzi, Chairman and CEO.

The company didn’t disclose sales by country or region, but said sales increased in northern Europe and Spain.

The United States and Western Europe are key markets for expanding its retail store network, Natuzzi said.