Bindeballe Holding A/S (Koncern)

Development in activities and financial matters
We have a growth strategy which is primarily focused on the European markets, whose overall market is expected to grow due to the increase in the leasing level.

The COVID-19 pandemic gave birth to the highest decline ever in activity in the hotel industry and accordingly at Beirholms Væverier A/S. Now the financial years 2021/22 and 2022/23 have financially shown full recovery for Beirholm on our way back from the pandemic close down. The demand for private leisure has been strong, conference hotels are back, with traditional business stays still suffering a bit compared to pre-pandemic level.

At the brink of 2022/23 we were looking into a year with great uncertainty because of the recent war in Ukraine. Energy crisis and high inflation and supply chain difficulties from especially sea freight were threatening another global setback. Despite great uncertainties including escalating interest rates designed to reduce global activity, 2022/23 showed to be the historical year where the revenue on group level incl. Creadore A/S passed 500 million DKK. We are proud of and satisfied with this achievement.
The achievements have been realized as a result of our long term strategy build on strong partnerships, an agile and highly competent organization, and industry leading products.

We rest assured that we can navigate another possible storm on the market given our experience from the lockdown periods during the pandemic.
Financial performance
As we entered the 2022/23 fiscal year, challenges stemming from uncertainties in energy supply, inflation, escalating interest rates, supply chain disruptions, and an overheated labor market emerged. This mix of uncertainties naturally heightened our concerns. Nevertheless, we remained confident that our overarching strategy would endure, positioning us to outperform the market.
Overseas transport challenges disappeared within the first weeks of the financial year, restoring sailing times and freight rates to near-normal levels. This strengthened our endlessly efforts to reduce time to market and at the same time reduce capital tied up in inventory.
Escalating interest rates heightened the focus on reducing working capital tied-up, both internally and at our customer's end. The full impact of these interest rate increases is yet to be realized, particularly considering general activity levels in Europe, which could potentially reduce private purchasing power and demand for hotel accommodation.
Shorter lead times, combined with higher capital costs and fluctuating prices for yarns and raw materials, led to a shift toward shorter but normalized order horizons among our customers. This resulted in a slightly lower second half of the year compared to a record-high first half.
High inflation rates in Denmark and Europe, driven by energy and raw material prices, normalized toward the end of the year.
Despite Denmark's record-high employment rate, we successfully attracted and filled new positions with highly skilled individuals, reinforcing our confidence in our future market position.


Although we achieved a historic turnover in the Group, the pre-tax result is slightly lower than last year, reflecting investments in additional personnel and other strategic activities.

According to the annual report 2021/22 revenue and result after tax for 2022/23 was expected in the range of 465 - 530 mDKK and 25 - 48 mDKK, respectively. Thus, revenue was realised within the higher end of the expected range and result after tax was realised a bit above the expected range.

Outlook
Looking into a challenging and unpredictable 2023/24, various opposing elements may affect our development.
While inflation has normalized, the full effects of increased interest rates are yet to be seen. In our primary markets, a less constrained labor market is anticipated, though not to an extent that would severely impact the economy. Consequently, we expect sustained robust demand for hotel accommodation, a fundamental driver of our business.
Continued investments in the laundry sector are still expected, although rising interest rates may naturally temper investments in new laundry capacity. As our products support improved energy utilization and enhanced capacity efficiency in laundries, we anticipate maintaining our status as the preferred choice of our customers.
The budget for the coming year projects a turnover at the level of 2022/23, with a certain margin, resulting in an expected range of DKK 500-550 million. The major uncertainty in this context is the realization of our expectations related to the macro-economic development.
Operating on positive expectations for the future, we persist in investing substantial resources, leading to an anticipated increase in costs for the coming year. Consequently, earnings are projected to be slightly lower than this year, with a net result after tax in the range of DKK 25-40 million expected.