Marimekko Stock

Good afternoon. My name is Anna Tuominen, and I'm the IRO of Marimekko, and it is my pleasure to welcome you to our second quarter results webcast. Before we begin, just a few practicalities. At the end of the session, we will have some time for questions and answers, and you can use the chat function on the web platform to post your questions already during the presentation. We'll take them at the end.

With me, I have our President and CEO, Tiina Alahuhta-Kasko. In a short while, Tiina will go through our Q2 results. And after that, our CFO, Elina Anckar, will join us for the Q&A session.

Without further ado, Tiina, please go ahead.

Thank you, Anna, and good afternoon, everybody. And it's my pleasure to walk you through our half year financial report. So let's get started. When it comes to our second quarter, our net sales were nearly at previous year's record level, driven by strong growth in the APAC region. Our operating profit was behind the comparison period.

Overall, our net sales in the second quarter landed at EUR 43.9 million. The operating environment continued as uncertain due to the geopolitical and trade policy tensions, which reflects in consumer confidence in many countries. Net sales were weakened by a decrease in our domestic retail sales in a challenging market situation due to certain sales campaigns performing weaker than expected.

Then again, on the other hand, our net sales were boosted by the excellent development of our retail sales in all international market areas. In total, our international sales increased by 7%. The strongest growth came from the Asia-Pacific region. Net sales in Finland decreased by 7% due to the retail sales declining.

As to our profitability, our comparable operating profit totaled EUR 5.1 million, equaling to 11.7% of net sales, and our operating profit was weakened, in particular, by increased fixed costs.

Our cash flow from operating activities improved and our financial position remained strong. Cumulatively, when we look at the first half of the year 2026, our net sales increased by 2%, driven by growth in international sales and our comparable operating profit margin was at a good level at 12.2%. Today, we also reiterated our financial guidance for the full year.

Now we enter the fall season at Marimekko with full determination and energetically work -- continue our work towards scaling the Marimekko phenomenon around the world. But then let's look at the drivers behind the second quarter and half year results.

Starting from the net sales in the second quarter, as just mentioned, our net sales were nearly at the record level of the comparison period, amounting to EUR 43.9 million. Net sales in Finland decreased by the 7% when retail sales declined in the challenging market situation due to certain sales campaigns performing weaker than expected. Then again, on the other hand, our domestic wholesale sales actually increased, partly supported by nonrecurring promotional deliveries.

It is good to remember that despite the recent positive development of the Finnish export industry, the consumer confidence in Finland is still at the weak level, although it improved slightly towards the end of the second quarter, which in itself is, of course, promising. Then when looking at our company's second biggest market area, the Asia Pacific region, our net sales grew by a nice 16% as both retail and wholesale sales increased. Then in total, our international net sales grew by 7% as retail sales increased in all international market areas.

Moving on to the first half of the year. Our net sales increased by 2% to EUR 85.3 million, boosted -- being boosted in particular by the growth in retail sales in the Asia Pacific region and other international market areas. In Finland, our net sales decreased by 4% due to the retail sales declining in this price-sensitive and tactical operating environment. But again, on the other hand, our wholesale sales in Finland increased, partly supported by domestic nonrecurring promotional deliveries.

In our second largest market area, the Asia Pacific region, our net sales strengthened by 7% with retail sales in particular, developing well. And as our retail sales developed well also in other international market areas in addition to the Asia Pacific region, namely in total by 20%, then also our total international sales increased by 8%.

So a nice development in the international markets for Marimekko. When we look at the split of our net sales by market area, no major changes in the first half of the year. The share of Finland decreased a little bit, while at the same time, the shares of our total net sales of the different international markets then increased.

There are no major changes in the net sales by product line split. In the second quarter, our omnichannel store network grew in Asia when 6 new stores were opened and 3 pop-up stores were converted into permanent stores. Today, a total of 183 Marimekko stores -- our physical stores serve customers around the world, while our online store serves already in 39 countries.

Then when we look at our brand sales, which represent the reach of the Marimekko brand through different distribution channels, our brand sales totaled EUR 168.1 million and 64% of our brand sales came from outside of our home market in the first half of the year.

Moving on then to our profitability. So in the second quarter, our comparable operating profit was behind the comparison period, totaling EUR 5.1 million, which equals to 11.7% of net sales. In particular, the increased fixed costs weakened the operating profit. Also the decrease in net sales had a negative impact, while then on the other hand, the improved relative sales margin had a positive impact on our operating profit development.

Our fixed cost in the second quarter increased due to the growth in personnel expenses driven by, in particular, general pay increases in different markets as well as then due to higher marketing costs. Our relative sales margin was then, again, improved by unrealized exchange rate differences and lower logistic costs. Cumulatively, our operating profit is at a good level at EUR 10.4 million, equaling to 12.2% of net sales when we look at the comparable operating profit margin. Our operating profit was weakened by the increased fixed costs, while then on the other hand, improved relative sales margin and an increase in net sales affected positively.

The fixed cost, similarly as to the second quarter had similar drivers. First of all, the marketing costs had significant growth and then personnel expenses also increased, driven in particular by general pay increases in different markets. Relative sales margin, then again, strengthened by unrealized exchange rate differences, lower logistic costs and increased licensing income. On the other hand, then higher discount costs were weakening the relative sales margin.

There was an abundance of colorful events in Marimekko's second quarter of 2026. First of all, we did reach a very special milestone in the second quarter when we opened so many new stores in the Asia-Pacific region. So today, there are a total of 102 Marimekko stores in this region. As mentioned, six entirely new stores were opened in Asia during the second quarter. Three pop-up stores were converted into permanent stores and then also two pop-up stores delighted our customers, both existing and new.

During the review period, we launched in a completely new market in the Philippines when three smaller shop-in-shops opened in three department stores. Then after the review period, we opened another new market for Marimekko, namely Indonesia, where two of the first shop-in-shops opened their doors. Naturally, these new market launches further reinforce our presence in the dynamic markets of Southeast Asia.

The second quarter also saw the important Milan Design Week, which is probably the most important industry event in the field of design. The Osteria Fiori Marimekko lifestyle experience and our new designs and also classic designs really attracted attention during this week, both among visitors and international media.

Many of you might already know that we have a tradition of well over 30 years of kicking off the summer and celebrating our new summer collections with everybody through the Marimekko Day activities. And this year, the Marimekko Day was celebrated through a roster of the classic fashion shows in the Esplanade Park here in Helsinki, but also an event in Tokyo.

A roster of other customer events and activations also took place in the second quarter in Bangkok, Taipei, Helsinki, Paris and New York and this way, boosting our brand visibility in these key markets. Overall, different kind of creative events and experiences play a really important role to build Marimekko's cultural relevance and sort of build this Marimekko universe this way. Strengthening our customer relationship and our brand equity. We also had bright artist collaborations coloring several of our key cities, Helsinki, in New York and Paris in the second quarter.

Moving on then to our outlook in 2026. So first, a few words in general. So of course, it's clear that there are still significant uncertainties related to the development of the global economy, such as the tensions related to geopolitics and trade relations, the war in Iran, the rapid changes in trade policies as well as other uncertainties are reflected in consumer confidence, purchasing power and behavior and as a result, can have a weakening impact on Marimekko.

In addition, various disruptions in production and logistics chains as well as changes in these chains caused by uncertainties may also have a negative impact. But as always, we are monitoring the situations and adjust our operations and plans, if necessary, accordingly.

A few words about seasonality. So due to the seasonal nature of our business, a major portion of our company's euro-denominated net sales and operating profit are -- and operating results are traditionally generated during the second half of the year. The timing between the quarters of the nonrecurring promotional deliveries in Finnish wholesales and their size typically vary on an annual basis. Today, we have also now updated the outlook for our licensing income for 2026. And today, we forecast it to grow from the previous year.

As to our net sales development, a few words of our key markets. So first of all, starting from our home market, Finland. Due to the uncertainties in the market environment, our net sales in Finland in '26 are expected to be approximately at the level of the previous year or decrease slightly. Sales in Finland are impacted by the uncertain general economy as well as the development of consumer confidence, purchasing power and behavior. And while there are indeed early signs of general economic recovery, the operating environment in Finland has remained tactical and price sensitive and consumer confidence continues to be weak, which has an impact -- can have an impact on the business.

In 2026, the nonrecurring promotional deliveries in wholesales are expected to grow from the comparable year and be weighted in the second half of the year. In the international front, overall, we estimate our international sales to grow in 2026. We also estimate our net sales in the Asia Pacific region, our second largest market area, to increase in 2026. Our aim this year is to open approximately 10 to 15 new Marimekko stores and shop-in-shops this year, and most of these planned openings will be in Asia.

Moving on to the growth investments and costs. We, of course, develop our business with a long-term view and aim to continue scaling our profitable growth in the upcoming years. In 2026, our fixed costs are expected to be up compared to the previous year. Of course, also the general cost inflation continues to also affect Marimekko in 2026, and our marketing expenses are expected to grow. What is also good to note is that the early commitments to product orders from partner suppliers weaken our ability to optimize product orders and respond to rapid changes in demand and supply environment and thus increases business risk.

There are also uncertainties related to global production and logistic chains, which can, for example, increase costs or cause delays and this way have a negative impact on our sales and profitability. The ongoing war in Iran may, especially if prolonged, increase production and logistic costs. But again, as always, we work actively in various ways to ensure competitive and functioning production and logistics chains to mitigate the increased costs and other negative impacts as well as to avoid delays and enhance inventory management.

So today, we reiterate our financial guidance for 2026, and we expect our net sales in 2026 to grow from the previous year, and our comparable operating profit margin is estimated to be approximately some 16% to 19%. The development of the consumer confidence and purchasing power in our main markets, in particular, caused significant volatility to the outlook. This development is, of course, strongly impacted by the rapid changes and uncertainties in geopolitics and global trade policy, among others. In addition, different disruptions in global supply chains can cause volatility to the outlook.

Then this morning, Marimekko's Board of Directors announced new medium financial goals for Marimekko targeting strong profitability by scaling growth. So at Marimekko, overall, we believe that the winning brands of the future are determined in the more challenging market conditions. The long-term financial goals that our Board set some years ago are unchanged, and they provide us with clear longer-term direction.

Given the current challenging operating environment, our Board of Directors has today decided to set new medium, 3 to 5 years financial goals under which our aim is to achieve annual net sales growth of 10%. The core goal for the comparable operating profit margin remains 20% also in the medium term. Then finally, overall, we believe that Marimekko's original lifestyle brand, which resonates with a wide consumer base paired with our strong financial position, provides us an excellent foundation to continue our consistent work and investments in growth, both in Finland and in international markets.

With these words, I would say thank you for listening, and we can open up for questions.

Thank you, Tiina. And I would like to invite Elina Anckar to join us as well. You have posted a lot of questions. That's really nice, and you can still use the remaining time to post more questions if you would like to.

Maybe a few questions about the Q2 sales first about the North American sales. Some companies are reporting already sort of increased sales in that market altogether. Marimekko had a sort of double-folded picture with retail sales developing well, but wholesale sales being a bit down. Can you walk us through this? Or is there some learnings from this for the remaining of the year or?

Yes. Of course. So when it comes to North America, of course, starting from the omnichannel retail sales, we're, of course, very happy that our long-term efforts show in continued nice retail sales development. Our retail sales in North America increased by 8% in the second quarter. When it comes to then the wholesale sales, it's important to remember that in wholesale sales, it's typical to have sometimes sort of variation or fluctuation between different quarters based on the kind of ordering rhythm of different wholesale clients. And I think that here, it is good to remember that when we look at the first half of the year in wholesale sales, we actually saw some nice growth also in North America.

What about then Asia Pacific? Is it possible to quantify how much of the growth came from new markets, new openings and -- or sort of versus the old ones.

So overall, when we look at the second quarter, Asia Pacific, again, a very nice development with 16% net sales growth. The growth in Asia Pacific in the second quarter was driven by the very strong development of retail sales, namely 43% retail sales growth. And -- but at the same time, also the wholesale grew by 6%. So when we think about what are included in our retail sales numbers in Asia Pacific region, we include in that number are Australia omnichannel retailers, so both physical stores and online stores and also the China online sales.

When it comes to -- you were also -- the question was also asking about the role of new market openings. As I mentioned in my presentation, in Philippines, where we actually launched in the second quarter, we opened the first small three shop-in-shops. So of course, these are first small steps that allow us to start learning from this very interesting market in the longer term. So in that sense, these are still like smaller steps. And holistically speaking, understanding also the volatilities and uncertainties in the world, we're very happy with the performance, both in retail and in wholesale in the Asia Pacific region.

Yes. Regarding Q2, there's a question around inventory. Inventory was slightly up -- how comfortable are you with this level ahead of H2?

Okay. Actually, if we look at the end of the H2 situation versus the last year, the inventory was a little bit down compared to last year. And in terms of inventory, of course, it's super important for us that we make sure that we have the inventory, what is needed for the growth in terms of the quantity, but also in terms of the content of the inventory, but at the same time, ensuring that it's optimal from the quantity point of view as well.

There's a few questions related to the outlook in the Finnish market going forward. Sort of the outlook today was rephrased to be approximately previous year's level or slightly below. So is the outlook for the second half now weaker than before? Or was the weak sales more isolated in Q2 is one question. Or then the another way of putting it around is sort of like as it was already down 4% year-on-year, what gives you the confidence of giving this guidance of stable year-on-year on a full year level? And how do you see -- do you see any signs of improvement in the overall market in H2?

So of course, as I mentioned, so the sort of positive news that we have been reading on the export industry development in Finland and the sort of slight uptick on the consumer confidence towards the end of the second quarter of these -- of course, these are as such, this is positive. And of course, we hope that, that will continue.

But the underlying trend has been there for quite a long time. And I got the Q2 specifically.

And I think that, that is also like really important to remember that the consumer confidence in Finland has been weak for a longer time that -- and even though it improved, it's still at the weak level. And of course, we hope to see like everybody, I'm sure, that the kind of positive news overall in the export industries and so forth that they will start translating also to the consumer confidence in a stronger manner.

So I think that overall, when we look at sales in Finland, they are impacted by the -- in 2026 by the uncertain general economy as well as the development of consumer confidence, purchasing power and behavior. Something good to remember when it comes to the second quarter of the year in Finland is exactly these nonrecurring promotional deliveries. And we have communicated that in 2026, these nonrecurring promotional deliveries in wholesale sales in Finland are expected to grow from the previous year and are expected to be weighted to the second half of the year.

Yes. Another question related to the full year outlook or the market outlook. Licensing income outlook was upgraded. What has changed since the last time we spoke?

Sure. Then Sweet, the outlook when it comes to licensing income in 2026 has improved.

Marimekko recently appointed a new COO. The question here is that with the new COO in place, where do you see digital data and AI playing a bigger role in making Marimekko more agile? Maybe just to correct that this role is COO of supply chain. But I think the question of digital data and AI in Marimekko going forward is still a very important question. And actually, the person asking is also asking that does the expansion in Asia also sort of change what we need in digital ecosystems or capabilities?

Like this is a very good and actually big question, and I'm sure that also our Chief Technology Officer and people from the team would be happy to have like a couple of hours lecture on this topic. It's a very exciting topic. So overall, I think that what we can also see is that also because of this more challenging market situation and uncertain market situation, we need to be even more creative and even more agile. And we do see that, for example, the use of AI and new technologies give us even better tools to develop that, both from an efficiency point of view, but equally to support growth acceleration.

And at Marimekko, we have a very strong technology team. But of course, when it comes to the AI uses and technological development, this is a whole organizational initiative. And of course, we are eager to capture the opportunities that new technologies provide for us in the future. Then there was like today and in the future.

And then there was also the question about whether there might be some kind of special kind of different kind of needs from a technological digital capability or ecosystem point of view in Asia. So it is interesting because when we look at the different markets in Asia, also the online kind of shopping ecosystems do vary. So for example, as we know, in China, the online business happens in platforms such as Tmall and JD. and so forth. But whereas, for example, in Korea, it's again different platforms. And I think here, the key really is that we, in all markets, take the position of the target consumer in the way that we approach the market and develop the different channels.

So we always need to serve the customers in the channels that are relevant for our target customer in each particular market. And this really requires kind of this understanding like with boots on the ground thinking so that we are relevant. And of course, for example, if we think about the Chinese market, the South Korean market as an example, they are extremely advanced digital markets. And we can also learn a lot and utilize some of those learnings on this part of the planet.

Yes. What about the new Southeast Asia openings? Are there -- we mentioned in the presentation that there are a few shop-in-shops at the moment. Are there primary sort of more brand building opportunity? Or can it become a meaningful sales contributor over medium term?

So some of you might remember that as part of our Asia growth strategy, we already have quite nice presence built up in many of the Southeast Asian markets, for example, Thailand and Singapore, and we have already started to also take steps some years ago in Vietnam and Malaysia. So it's a very natural step for us now to start building our kind of brand story little by little also in Indonesia, in the Philippines.

So we rather see Indonesia and Philippines as an opportunity to start building our story gradually in the longer term. And now we're taking the first steps to start to learn of the market together with our partners. And overall, this way, we can kind of reinforce further our Southeast Asia ecosystem.

Good. But the midterm financial goals that were published today. Could you walk -- maybe, Elina, could you walk through us some building blocks on how to reach this 10% sales growth target in 3 to 5 years?

Yes. Thank you for an excellent question. And as even if like new midterm targets were introduced, our strategy hasn't changed. So that is good to remember. And if then talking about the building blocks where we then going to get that growth is, first of all, it's, of course, our omnichannel retail, which then covers our own stores, but then also partner-led stores, international growth being there, the Asia being the growth driving region. We cannot forget Finland.

We are definitely here seeking for market share growth as well. And then also new customers in different other channels like in wholesale channels, e-tailers, department stores, -- and then at the same time, it's good to remember that because we can also think of like the licensing opportunities and brand awareness building through the brand collab. So we are gaining there also the awareness and also an income. And then there is also a possibility for us to add some product groups for the palette as well.

Maybe a bit as a follow-up to that, over the past 3 -- looking back past 3 years, both in Finland and internationally, the sales growth has been less than 10% overall. What makes you believe that you can reach this 10% growth in the coming years? Are there some market recovery assumptions behind it? Or is it sort of totally something that can be done even if the market stays as it is?

So I think that, first of all, today, when our Board announced this new medium-term financial targets, our Chair, Mika also shared that, of course, these great uncertainties in the global macro environment caused by the geopolitical tensions and trade policy tensions. Those have had an impact on the consumer confidence across markets and especially in Finland, our important home market, which has also impacted our overall net sales development.

At the same time, I'm very proud, and he also mentioned that in the release that we're very proud of the progress that we have already made in our scale strategy. So despite all these uncertainties that we have seen in the world and in the operating environment and also really affecting our industry, in Finland and in the international, we have been developing well in the past years also in the Finnish market. And we, of course, are here to develop Marimekko in the long term and the fact that the continued positive development of our business paired with a very strong financial position and also allow us the excellent possibility to continue making these investments strengthening, further reinforcing our competitiveness in the long term. So we actually believe that this is a great advantage.

As the midterm growth target is slightly lower than the long-term growth target, does it mean that there's less cost increases, less need for investments for growth than in the midterm?

So when it comes to these targets, so we have now defined that the medium-term targets are for 3 to 5 years. The long-term targets really provide us good longer-term direction. And again, the Board set these new targets given the current challenging operating environment. And I think that here, when it comes to kind of increasing profitability, the key driver of that in our strategy is scaling up top line growth. That is the key lever. And as Elina mentioned, our scale strategy is intact. We follow the same good strategy and continue to progress on that journey.

One of the key points in scale strategy is the sharpened creative vision and all the time developing our collections. There's a very specific question that could Marimekko consider a small male-dedicated line of clothing going forward?

And thank you for that question and also feedback. This is something that we are increasingly kind of getting questions about. So it's definitely something that at some point in time, we need to consider. Of course, today, we already have our Marimekko Kioski more unisex line, and we have also through that as well as our accessories and home decoration lines got and also new male customers.

However, when it comes to the ready-to-wear collection, today, we are firmly focusing on the womenswear. And this is purely because of the fact that we very much believe that strategically in order to succeed, we also need to have a clear focus.

Yes. One final question related to the Finnish outlook for this year. What is the confidence of reaching this new outlook for Finland even if the underlying market would not improve at all?

So of course, our market outlook is always based on management's best estimate and judgment. So this is what we believe in and what we're working on. And I think that overall, looking at Marimekko, we are a creative company. We use creativity also not only in the obvious in the design and in the kind of creative marketing and brand, but equally actually to mitigate the challenging market circumstances and come up with newfound agility in our ways of working. So this is what we're focusing on.

Thank you. That was all the questions we had today. We are so happy that you took the time to join us, and we hope to see you with our Q3 results as well. Thank you.

Thank you.

Good afternoon. My name is Anna Tuominen. I'm the IRO of Marimekko, and it is my pleasure to welcome you to our Q1 results webcast. In a short while, Tiina will go through our latest results. And after that, we'll have time for your questions. You can ask your questions during the webcast using the chat function of the platform, either during the presentation or shortly after that. And we'll have Tiina and our CFO, Elina Anckar to answer those. But without further ado, Tiina, please go ahead.

Thank you, Anna, and good afternoon, everyone. It is again my pleasure to walk you through our results now for the first quarter of 2026. So how did Marimekko's Q1 2026 go? It went well. Despite the continued challenging market situation, our net sales grew driven by growth in international sales and our operating profit improved. Our net sales in the first quarter increased in total by 5% and totaled EUR 41.4 million. And the net sales were boosted especially by the increased wholesale sales, both in Scandinavia and in Finland. Our international sales altogether increased by 9% as retail sales grew in all and wholesale sales in nearly all international market areas. Our net sales in Finland were on par with the comparison period. Then our -- as it comes to our profitability, our comparable operating profit improved by 19% and amounted to EUR 5.3 million, equaling to 12.7% of net sales. And our operating profit was increased by improved relative sales margin and the growth of net sales. Also, our cash flow from operating activities improved and our financial position continued to be strong.

Overall, the strong start for 2026 really demonstrates Marimekko's international competitiveness and puts us in a great position to continue investing in our long-term future, including investing in our brand awareness, in our digitalization, in our retail network and sustainability, among others, despite the uncertainties in the operating environment. But let's have a closer look to the drivers behind the Q1 net sales and results. So as mentioned, the net sales altogether increased by 5%, boosted in particular by the increased wholesale sales in Scandinavia and in Finland. The uncertainty in the operating environment continues and consumer confidence, for example, is weak in many countries. Nevertheless, the net sales in our home market in Finland were on par with the comparison period. The retail sales in Finland decreased as they were impacted by the challenging market conditions, but the domestic nonrecurring promotional deliveries increased wholesale sales. In our second largest market area, the Asia Pacific region, our net sales were on par with the comparison period as retail sales in the region grew by 13%.

And as previously estimated, our wholesale sales decreased by 4% due to timing reasons. Overall, really nice growth in the international area. Our international sales grew by 9% altogether as retail sales grew by actually 20% and wholesale sales by 4%, which I think is an outcome that we can be very happy about. When it then comes to our net sales split by market area and by product line, no major changes here. In terms of the product line, the strongest growth was seen in the bags and accessories category that grew 11% and therefore, increased a little bit the share of bags and accessories out of our total net sales. Our omnichannel store network grew further. And today, as for a long time, the Asia Pacific region has the greatest number of Marimekko stores and the online store serves customers in 39 countries already. In total, today, there are 176 Marimekko stores all around the world and 95 of them are located in the Asia Pacific region.

Our brand sales totaled EUR 84.1 million. And in the first quarter, 67% of our brand sales came outside of our home market, Finland. As to our profitability, as mentioned, really nice growth in the comparable operating profit, 19% growth and the comparable operating profit totaled EUR 5.3 million, which is 12.7% of net sales. The improved relative sales margin and the growth of net sales increased the operating profit, while then on the other hand, the increased fixed costs had a negative impact on the operating profit. The relative sales margin was improved by the unrealized exchange rate differences. While then on the other hand, the relative sales margin was weakened by discounts being higher than in the comparison period. The fixed cost increased, in particular, due to higher marketing costs, but also due to increased personnel expenses and the personnel expense increases are related to these kind of general salary increases in different countries.

Then moving on to key events in the first 3 months of 2026, a lot of activities, exciting activities in the start of the year. So we really kicked off the year 2026, which is Marimekko's 75th anniversary year in a big way through our winter 2026 ready-to-wear fashion show that we hosted here in our hometown in Helsinki. The event drew a large audience of our friends, influencers and media and really gave a nice start for the year. As already mentioned, our omnichannel Marimekko store network continued in the first quarter and 4 new stores and 6 pop-up stores were opened primarily in Asia. Something exciting is also the fact that in the first quarter, we announced future expansion plans in Southeast Asia, namely the launch in 2 new markets for Marimekko, Indonesia and Philippines, where our plan is to open the first Marimekko shop-in-shops now in the summer of 2026. When the world outside looks grim, we believe that the right recipe is just to further inspire and energize our customers and what a better way to do that, but in the Marimekko stores.

So we hosted a lot of special activations in our stores in key cities. We brought a glimpse of the Marimekko print archive to Paris to the Matter and Shape design event, hosted an archived dress pop-up in our Paris flagship store and actually launched an entirely new store event concept called Marimekko & Friends. And here on the slide, you can see images from the first event with an artist playing in our flagship store window and more to come in the later months this year. We also announced new brand collaborations. First of all, continuation of our collaboration with Kalevala jewelry. But then we also unveiled a new limited edition collaboration collection this time with global tech and lifestyle accessories brand, CASETiFY. After the review period in April in the leading design event of the world, the Milan Design Week, we hosted the Osteria Fiori di Marimekko.

This was a very warm and authentic Marimekko lifestyle experience where we celebrated not only colorful Marimekko flowers and art of fringe making, but also togetherness through food and through budget tournaments. And again, this event received significant attention at this very important industry event, supporting our awareness. In the early part of the year, we have also kicked off our new sustainability strategy term, whereby we will continue our consistent work on products, people and planet throughout the value chain. The key focus areas of our sustainability work continue to include timeless and long-lasting design, advancing circular economy, developing supply chain transparency and managing the social and environmental impacts of our business. Also, of course, the long-term development of the working environment and leadership culture are key parts of our sustainability efforts.

Marimekko is a value-driven company, and we believe that when we feel well at work and when we enjoy work, that also transmits to our customers. So we measure employee well-being and gather feedback from our staff through a variety of ways. And according to the results of our most recent comprehensive annual employee survey conducted at the beginning of the year, the Marimekko overall employee satisfaction is at a good level and has further improved. Our leadership skills are assessed as strong across the teams and organization. Willingness to recommend Marimekko as a workplace has increased and is at an excellent level. And something that I really want to highlight is the high response rate. So 90% of the Marimekko personnel have responded to this survey, which, of course, overall gives us a great basis to further continue reinforcing our working community and culture as a key strength of Marimekko. Then moving on to the outlook of 2026.

Of course, there are significant uncertainties related to the development of the global economy, such as the tensions related to geopolitics and trade relations and the war in Iran, the rapid changes in trade policies as well as other uncertainties are reflected in consumer confidence, purchasing power and behavior and thus can have a weakening impact on Marimekko. In addition, different disruptions in production and logistics chains as well as changes in these chains caused by these uncertainties may also have a negative impact. But of course, as always, we keep monitoring very closely the situations and developments and adjust our operations and plans accordingly, if necessary. Then a few words about seasonality.

So of course, due to the seasonal nature of our business, a major portion of our euro-denominated net sales and operating results are traditionally generated during the second half of the year. Also good to remember that the timing between the quarters of the nonrecurring promotional deliveries in Finnish wholesale sales and their size typically vary on an annual basis. And this year, in 2026, licensing income is forecasted to be approximately at the level of the previous year. Moving on to the net sales development. So starting from Finland, our important home market. Despite of the weak market situation, net sales in Finland are expected to increase in 2026.

The sales overall in Finland are impacted by the continued uncertain general economy and the low consumer confidence as well as the development of purchasing power and behavior and the operating environment indeed remains tactical and price sensitive. Something good to remember is also that in 2026, the nonrecurring promotional deliveries in wholesale sales are expected to grow from the comparable year and to be weighted clearly in the second half of the year as in 2025. Then in the international front, the international sales, we estimate to grow in 2026. Also in the Asia Pacific region, our second largest market area after Finland, we estimate our net sales to increase in 2026. Our aim in the started year is to open approximately 10 to 15 new Marimekko stores and shop-in-shops and most of these planned openings will be in Asia, similar to the previous years.

When it comes to the growth investments and costs, fixed costs in 2026 are expected to be up on the previous year. Also the marketing expenses are expected to increase. Something to note is that due to timing reasons, the increase in fixed cost is expected to be significantly stronger in the second quarter of '26 than in the first quarter of the year. Then again, the early commitments to product orders from our partner suppliers may undermine our ability to optimize product orders and respond to rapid changes in demand and supply environment. And there are indeed uncertainties related to the global production and logistics chains, which may, for example, increase costs or cause delays. The ongoing war in Iran, especially if prolonged, significantly may increase in particularly the logistic costs. However, as always, we work actively in various ways to ensure our competitive and functioning supply and production logistic chains to mitigate the increased costs and other negative impacts to avoid delays and to enhance inventory management.

And today, we reiterate our financial guidance for 2026. So we estimate our group's net sales for 2026 to grow from the previous year. And the comparable operating profit margin is estimated to be approximately some 16% to 19%. The development of consumer confidence and purchasing power in Marimekko's main markets, in particular, caused significant volatility to the outlook of 2026, and this development is strongly impacted by the rapid changes and uncertainties in geopolitics and global trade policy, among others. In addition, the different disruptions in the global chains -- supply chains can cause volatility to the outlook. But with these words, I would like to thank you and open up for the Q&A and invite also Anna and Elina here with me on stage.

Thank you, Tiina.

Thank you.

I would just like to remind you to use the chat function if you have a question that you would like to present to Tiina or Elina. We have a few questions here. First, a question related -- sort of detailed question relates to European sales. The retail sales in Europe in Q1 increased by 32% and overall European net sales increased by 11%, can you comment if the Paris flagship store was already visible in these numbers? It was opened at the end of October.

Yes. So as Anna, you mentioned, so the Paris flagship store was opened at the end of October. So yes, the Paris store is indeed in the retail numbers. The retail numbers are, of course, omnichannel retail numbers. So they also include our online sales. And something good to remember is that actually last year, we also opened 2 new language versions of our online store, so namely the French-speaking online store and the German-speaking online store to support our sales development also on the online front in Europe.

So a lot of new things in Europe.

Yes.

A couple of questions related to the guidance or the market outlook. You mentioned the importance of consumer confidence and purchasing power, especially to Finnish market and the statistics at the beginning of the year have been quite gloomy. But in just recent days, we've seen some positive signs. Can you comment on the importance of the Finnish market or the sort of the outlook for that?

Yes. So of course, like looking at the Finnish market, so as Anna, you just mentioned, so overall, when it comes to the consumer confidence, those numbers have continued to be very weak in the domestic market. However, there have been some glimpses of more positive news in the outlooks of Finnish companies. Of course, we hope to see an uptick in the consumer behavior, but it's something that we keep monitoring and it's still important to remember that overall, there is a lot of uncertainty in the marketplace and the consumer confidence is still on a weak level according to the statistics.

Yes. This time in the market outlook, there was a phrase added to the fixed cost. So from the start of the year, the estimate has been that the fixed cost will increase, but now it was also estimated that the cost increase in Q2 will be significantly stronger than in Q1. Does this mean that your -- that the Marimekko's adjusted EBIT could be lower year-on-year?

So as I just mentioned, we reiterate our financial guidance. So on the profitability part, we estimate that our comparable operating profit margin in 2026 will be approximately some 16% to 19%.

So no changes.

No changes there.

Then last question related to the scale strategy and the end-to-end digitalization, namely the AI. So what kind of strategic leverage could AI or will AI provide for Marimekko going further? And how is it being currently utilized?

So, of course, at Marimekko, understanding that in our scale strategy, the letter E, as, Anna, you mentioned very well, equals to end-to-end digitality, meaning that we are excited to adopt and like leverage the opportunities of new technologies and data and overall digitalization and utilize them to boost our and support our sales as well as improve our efficiency. So maybe when it comes to -- maybe a few words when it comes to the use of AI. So again, AI, we use both to support and boost and accelerate our sales as well as improve our profitability. So some concrete examples on the kind of sales boosting front is, for example, the personalization of our online store, also the same when it comes to our marketing content. Then some concrete examples when it comes to boosting efficiencies. For example, the increased use of automation is a very concrete example. But there are abundant opportunities that we're excited to adopt.

Thank you, Tiina. That was all the questions we had this time. Thank you for taking the time to be with us today, and we hope to see you in August with the Q2 results.

Thank you.

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Anna Tuominen. I'm the IRO of Marimekko. Thank you for joining us today. We have the opportunity to hear our President and CEO, Tiina Alahuhta-Kasko, in a few minutes to go through Marimekko's Q4 and full year results from 2025. And after that, we have reserved some time for Q&A with Tiina and our CFO, Elina Anckar, answering your questions. You can type in your questions using the chat function already during the presentation and then we'll start going through them after we first heard Tiina's wise words.

Tiina, please go ahead.

Thank you so much, Anna, and good afternoon, everyone. It's my pleasure to share with you a few words about Marimekko's results in 2025. So let's get started with the fourth quarter of the year. As it pertains to our business development in the last quarter of the year, of course, the market situation continued to be challenging. But despite of that, our net sales grew from the comparison period's record level, fueled by our international sales and our operating profit margin was at a good level. Altogether, our net sales in the fourth quarter grew by 1% and totaled EUR 54.7 million.

Our net sales were driven especially by increased retail and wholesale sales in the Asia Pacific region in spite of the globally uncertain market situation and the weak consumer confidence. In total, our international sales increased by 5%. Net sales in our home market in Finland were down by just 1% as retail sales declined in the environment that in Finland remained highly price sensitive and tactical. Then as it pertains to our profitability, our comparable operating profit totaled EUR 8.8 million, equaling to 16.1% of net sales. It was decreased by higher fixed costs, while then improved relative sales margin and increased net sales had a positive impact on profitability. Overall, our cash flow from operations strengthened and our financial position continued to be strong.

Overall, as we now have entered to the 75th year of Marimekko's operations, our brand is as vibrant as ever. Then, of course, our strong financial position, paired with the sustained profitable growth and positive development of our business, they put us in a great position to continue scaling up the global brand -- Marimekko brand phenomenon growth also in the now started year.

But let's have a closer look now behind the drivers in net sales and operating profit. So starting with the Q4 net sales, which increased by plus 1% to EUR 54.7 million and being boosted in particular by the increased retail and wholesale sales in the Asia Pacific region. Overall, the net sales in Finland were close to par to the comparison period as our retail sales declined in the highly price-sensitive and tactical operating environment. However, wholesale sales grew by 2% when the domestic nonrecurring promotional deliveries increased. In our second biggest market area, the Asia Pacific region, our net sales grew by 10% as retail sales in the region increased by a very strong 24% and wholesale sales by 9%. Internationally, overall, our retail sales also grew in all other market areas. And in total, our international retail sales grew very strongly, so plus 20%. And in total, our international net sales grew by 5%.

Then when looking at the full year '25 performance, in total, our net sales increased by 4% to EUR 189.6 million, boosted especially by the growth of wholesale sales in the Asia Pacific region and in Europe as well as the increased retail sales in Scandinavia. The operating environment in Finland continued as challenging. And as estimated earlier, also the nonrecurring promotional deliveries in the domestic wholesale sales were considerably below the comparable year. But in spite of this, our net sales in Finland increased. Our retail sales in Finland were on par with the previous year's record level, while then wholesale sales increased by 1% and licensing income grew significantly.

Then when we look at our second largest market area, the Asia Pacific region, that increased by 2% when both wholesale and retail sales grew. So while we had a good development in this core business of retail and wholesale in the Asia Pacific region, the net sales in that region was negatively impacted by the considerable decline in the licensing income in the region. Overall, when we look at the group net sales performance in the full year level, as estimated since the beginning of 2025, the licensing income was considerably lower than in the previous year. And that, of course, had a negative impact on the total net sales development as well.

In total, sales grew by 7% with retail sales increasing in all and wholesale sales in almost all international market areas. So international sales, plus 7%. I think that's a good testament on us progressing well in our scaling journey despite the volatilities and uncertainties in the world economy and consumer confidence.

Then when we look at our net sales breakdown per market area and by product line, no major differences or changes in the split by market area. So Finland continuing to be the strong home market and then Asia Pacific being the second largest market, but also solid kind of shares across Scandinavia, Europe and North America. When we look at the net sales split by product line, fashion is there the biggest product line. And actually on a full year level, we saw the strongest growth from the fashion product line, namely 12%.

Our omnichannel store network also expanded in 2025. And today, 174 Marimekko stores around the world serve our customers. And our online store serves customers already also in 39 countries. Our brand sales in the full year amounted to EUR 385 million and 62% of our net sales came from the international markets. Then when we look into our profitability in the fourth quarter, our comparable operating profit margin -- profit was at a good level, amounting to 16.1% of net sales. Our operating profit was decreased by a higher fixed cost, while then the improved relative sales margin and increased net sales had a positive impact on our profitability.

When we look at the drivers behind the fixed cost increase, they were due to, in particular, the higher marketing costs, but also due to increased personnel expenses. Then when we look at what is behind the increased personnel expenses, it is the general pay increases in different markets as well as the increased personnel costs in stores to support retail. The relative sales margin was improved by margins per product being at a good level as well as lower logistic costs than in the comparison period, while then the relative sales margin was weakened by higher discount.

When we look at the situation cumulatively, our cumulative operating profit increased by 1%, and our comparable operating profit margin was at a good level, actually 17.1% of net sales, which I would say is a good outcome, especially in the volatility of the world situation. Our operating profit was, of course, boosted by the net sales growth, while then on the other hand, the higher fixed costs and weakened relative sales margin had a negative impact on the operating profit development. The fixed cost growth was attributable to, in particular, the increased personnel expenses, but also they were due to the investments in digital development. The reasons behind the personnel expenses increase were actually the same as in the fourth quarter.

The relative sales margin was negatively affected then by especially higher discounts and as estimated by significantly lower licensing income. In addition, also unrealized exchange rate differences had a weakening impact on sales margin. while the relative sales margin was then supported by margins per product being at a good level.

There were several key events that took place in the fourth and last quarter of the year that really show how we're progressing in scaling up the global Marimekko brand phenomenon and our growth. Let's have a look. First of all, at the end of October, we opened our historically first Paris flagship store. Paris is, of course, no doubt the most important fashion capital in the world whose impacts in brand awareness and positioning expand beyond Europe to also North America and Asia. This way, our presence in Paris supports the scaling of our brand phenomenon and long-term growth across channels and international markets. In the fourth quarter, also Marimekko store, originally opened in 2012, reopened as a flagship store in the same street in Hong Kong, which again allowed us to reinforce our brand awareness and positioning across the broader Asia region. Also, new Marimekko stores were opened in Tokyo and Bangkok along with 8 pop-up stores that delighted customers, mainly in Asia as well as a pop-up cafe, which all complement our omnichannel store network.

We also progress and continue to invest in our digital business. We launched at the end of the fourth quarter, a new Marimekko app that really offers an inspiring shopping experience and a digital home for our renewed loyalty program. The app also allows people to peek behind the scenes into our printing factory, into our print archive. And this app really allows us to deepen the engagement of our loyal customers. So really much at the core of our D2C business.

In the fourth quarter, we also hosted local collaborations, namely the JW Marriott Hotel in 9 places hosted Marimekko rooms as well as events as well as in Taichung in the Sundate Cafe, the experience was addressed in the Marimekko Prints. And these kind of creative brand experiences that really connect with the local culture and community, they really allow us to differentiate from the competitors and introduce our brand yet again to new audiences, in this case, in Asia.

To close the year, the Field of Flowers touring exhibition that actually has been, during the course of the year, touring and visiting a total of 11 cities, especially in Asia, made stops in Shanghai and Sydney. The Field of Flowers exhibition showcases the newest Marimekko floral print design, production, and these touring exhibitions have also featured pop-up stores, where people have been able to buy a bit of the new designs to their homes.

Sustainability is one of the key strategic success factors in our scale strategy, and we believe that determined efforts to develop sustainability support our long-term success. In 2025, we continued our progress in our sustainability work and actually achieved 3/4 of our very ambitious targets in our previous strategy, sustainability strategy term on the greenhouse gas emissions and water use reduction.

Then moving on to the outlook of 2026. Just a few words in general to get started. Of course, there are significant uncertainties related to the development of the global economy, such as the tensions related to geopolitics and trade relations, and the rapid changes in the trade policies, as well as other uncertainties, are reflected in consumer confidence, purchasing power and behavior, and thus can have a weakening impact on Marimekko. In addition, also, possible disruptions in production and logistics chains, and changes in these chains caused by the uncertainties may also have a negative impact. But of course, as usual, we're always monitoring these situations and developments and will adjust our operations and plans accordingly if needed.

A few words about seasonality. So due to the seasonal nature of our business, a major portion of our company's euro-denominated net sales and operating results are traditionally generated during the second half of the year. It's also good to remember that the timing between quarters of the non-recurring promotional deliveries in Finnish wholesale sales and their size typically vary on an annual basis. Licensing income in 2026, we forecast to be approximately at the level of the previous year.

Then, continuing to the net sales development outlook for 2026, starting from Finland, our important home market. Despite the weak market situation, our net sales, in the domestic market, Finland, are expected to increase in 2026. Sales in our domestic market are impacted by the continued weak general economy and low consumer confidence, as well as the development of purchasing power and behavior. The operating environment continues to be tactical and price sensitive, which continues to have an impact on the business.

What is good to note is that in 2026, the non-recurring promotional deliveries in wholesale sales are expected to grow from the comparable year, and they will be weighted in the second half of the year, as in 2025. What is also good to note is that the development of the domestic sales is estimated to be more muted in the first quarter of 2026.

Then moving on to the international. Overall, international sales, we estimate to grow in 2026. When it comes to the Asia-Pacific region, our second largest market area, we expect our net sales to increase in 2026. However, it's good to note that due to timing reasons, the development of sales in the Asia-Pacific region is estimated to be more muted in the first quarter of the year. In 2026, the aim is to open approximately 10-15 new Marimekko stores and shop-in-shops, and most of the planned openings will be in Asia.

When it comes to growth, investments, and costs, of course, we develop, as always, our business with a long-term view and aim to continue scaling our profitable growth in the upcoming years. Thus, our fixed costs are expected to be up on the previous year, so also the marketing expenses are expected to increase.

When it comes to the tariffs in the U.S., maybe a few words about that. So the increased tariffs in the U.S. have a direct impact only on a small part of our business, as the entire North American market accounted for 6% of our net sales in 2025, and we as a company are taking diverse measures to minimize the negative impacts of the tariffs. Then the early commitments to product orders from partner suppliers, which is typical of our industry and partly further emphasized due to the different factors, weakens our company's ability to optimize our product orders and respond to rapid changes in demand and supply environment, and thus increases business risks.

There are also uncertainties related to global production and logistics chains, but of course, we always work actively in various ways to ensure competitive and functioning production and logistics chains, to mitigate the increased costs and other negative impacts, and to avoid delays, and to enhance inventory management.

When it comes to our financial guidance for 2026, we expect our net sales for 2026 to grow from the previous year, and our comparable operating profit margin is estimated to be approximately 16% to 19%. The development of consumer confidence and purchasing power in our main markets, in particular, cause significant volatility to the outlook for 2026, and this development is strongly impacted by rapid changes and uncertainties in geopolitics and global trade policy, among others. In addition, possible disruptions in global supply chains can cause volatility to the outlook.

Then finally, a few words still about the proposal for dividend for 2025. Our board of directors is proposing to the AGM that a regular dividend of EUR 0.42 per share to be paid for 2025, and this is, of course, in line with our dividend policy, or actually higher than that.

With these words, I would like to open up the Q&A. Thank you for listening.

Thank you, Tiina. And I would like to invite also our CFO, Elina Anckar, here for the Q&A. And just to remind you, you can still type in your questions using the chat function, and we'll go through them. But let's start with a couple of questions related to the events that you went through. There was a lot happening in Q4. So the Paris flagship store, has it met your expectations? Are you happy with the launch?

So, of course, it's very early days still in Paris, as the opening took place at the end of October. I think that overall, as I mentioned in my presentation, taking the step to open a flagship store in Paris is a significant milestone in our scale journey, namely because of Paris being the fashion capital of the world, The store caters not only for the local consumer, and this way supports us, in our Europe strategy. Many of you, you might remember that, we are working on modernizing both our brand and our distribution network in Europe, but equally, Paris is a destination for tourists. So we see that, good, inspiring presence in Paris can also support our awareness and positioning efforts, more widely, including also in Asia and in North America.

What about the new Marimekko app? That was even more recent launched. But are you able to share some details on how that's developing? Can you see some impact on customer engagement or...

So of course, the Marimekko app was launched even later at the end of the year. And we're very excited about the Marimekko app. We have a very strong technology team at Marimekko, and we work in various diverse ways how to advance further digitalization of Marimekko's business to even better serve our customers and to support our efficiencies. The app plays a really important role in our direct-to-consumer business as it allows us to have a deeper engagement with our loyal customers and also provide to them an even more personalized experience. So they're excited to continue on that journey.

Yes. A question related to sales, especially the Finnish sales. At least in Finland, one can see that there's been quite a lot of campaigns lately. Is this something that you consider necessary in this market environment? And the question -- and the person asking the question is asking also that assuming that fewer campaigns would result in higher profitability.

So overall, if we look at the domestic market, like Finnish market sentiment over the course of the last couple of years. So of course, we know that the general economic situation in Finland has been quite gloomy and the consumer confidence has been very low. And all of these uncertainties have also reflected in general in the marketplace to highly tactical and price-sensitive behavior in the marketplace. So in order for us to be competitive, there are 2 things. We need to have commercial excellence so that we are relevant for the customers in the climate where we operate. And even more important is that we continuously invest into the desirability of our brands and the hype around it. So both are important to succeed in this kind of a more challenging market situation.

There needs to be a balance.

Yes.

Another question related to sales, maybe for Elina, about the licensing income, especially licensing income in 2026, so this year. Is this level of licensing income that we saw in '25 and that you're guiding now for '26, is it sort of a new normal, or should this be viewed as particularly low level, or how should investors look at the licensing income going forward?

Yes. Regarding licensing income, that is something that we actually give a market outlook every year. And for the year '26, we have said that the licensing income will be more or less in line with the '25 levels. But it's good to remember that when we look at backwards, years '23 and '24 were, like record high in terms of the licensing, but we will announce the outlook for the licensee fee every year.

There's also a couple of questions related to specifically marketing costs. So maybe I'll continue with the CFO. So you're guiding marketing costs to increase in '26. Is that in absolute terms or as a percentage of sales? And is there any way of giving a sort of guidance on how much they will increase? And what drives this kind of increase in '26?

As Tiina has already talked about like the importance of us continuing like increasing the brand awareness and the brand loves and the hype and in overall like making sure that we do invest into the growth even if the market situations are a little bit tougher. So for that perspective and based on a very strong financial situation, we are increasing our financial spend. And we're talking about like euro values here in terms of like the spend. And if we look at backwards, year '26, we spent some 6% of the turnover to marketing and the year before, the same 6%.

And maybe one addition to this is that when the market -- general market situation around the world is more challenging, it is also very much an opportunity for companies with a strong balance sheet and continued positive performance of our profitable growth and positive performance of our business to then invest into fueling our long-term growth. So we see that this also very much as an opportunity.

There actually was another question also related to this that why not adjust these fixed costs, especially marketing to be closer to the long-term target, but then you would lose the opportunity to invest in growth.

Yes. We have a scale strategy. So we are all about building our long-term growth.

That was actually all the questions this time. So we would like to thank you for joining us, and we hope to see you next time as well.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Good afternoon. My name is Anna Tuominen, and it is my pleasure to welcome you to Marimekko's Q3 results webcast today. With me, I have our President and CEO, Tiina Alahuhta-Kasko. And in a short while, she will tell you in detail about our results. After that, we have time for your questions with Tiina and our CFO, Elina Anckar, answering. I would like to invite you to already during the presentation to use the chat function to record your questions for the Q&A session.

Without further ado, Tiina, please go ahead.

Thank you, Anna. And good afternoon also on my behalf, and it is my pleasure and honor to share with you our third quarter interim report results. So how did we do in the third quarter? The answer is we did well. And namely despite the continued challenging macroeconomic environment, Marimekko's net sales and operating profit increased in the third quarter.

Our net sales in total grew by 8%, landing to EUR 50.8 million. Our net sales were driven and boosted in particular by the increased wholesale sales, both in Finland and abroad. And in total, our net sales in the domestic market, Finland increased by 7% and our international sales increased by 8%.

Driven by the growth in net sales, our comparable operating profit improved by 14% to EUR 12.7 million, representing 24.9% of net sales. Overall, we can see at Marimekko that our continued strong development in our business paired with our good financial position give us good premises to continue our efforts and investments to scale up both the global Marimekko brand phenomenon as well as our profitable growth.

We firmly believe that the winning brands of the future are determined in the more challenging market environment. But let's look at the drivers behind our results in more detail.

Starting from net sales. As mentioned in the third quarter, our net sales grew by 8%, and they were boosted especially by the increased wholesale sales, both in Finland and internationally. In our important domestic market, Finland, our net sales grew by 7%, boosted especially by these increased wholesale sales, which were partly attributable to the domestic nonrecurring promotional deliveries.

Then our retail sales in Finland fell short of the strong comparison period. But what is good to remember is that when we look at cumulatively in the first 9 months, also the retail sales in Finland grew. Then in our company's second largest market, the Asia Pacific region, our net sales increased by 8% due to growth in wholesale sales. And namely, our wholesale sales actually grew in Asia Pacific region. And this, of course, includes our sales to our loose franchise partners by 10%.

Retail sales in the Asia Pacific region were on par with the comparison period. And in total, our international sales grew by 8%, and we saw net sales increasing in nearly all of our international market areas. Then when we look at the first 9 months of the year, our net sales increased by 5% to EUR 134.8 million, boosted especially by the growth in wholesale sales, both in Europe and in the Asia Pacific region as well as the growth in retail sales in Scandinavia and in Finland.

Our net sales in Finland grew by 3% due to -- especially by the positive development of our omnichannel retail sales. What we're also happy about is that our wholesale sales in Finland grew in the first 9 months, even with the nonrecurring promotional deliveries in domestic wholesale sales being considerably below the comparable year.

Then when we look at the international markets, our international net sales increased by a nice 8% when both wholesale sales and omnichannel retail sales grew in almost all international market areas. Our wholesale sales also increased in the Asia Pacific region with our retail sales being on par with the same period the year before. However, the market areas net sales decreased as no licensing income was recorded in the period under review, unlike in the strong comparison year.

What is good to remember, though, is that at Marimekko, we recognize the net sales from licensing income according to the geographical location of our contractual licensing partners, Domicile. Then if we exclude licensing, in the first 9 months of the year, our net sales in Asia Pacific region would have grown by 4%.

Then when we look at our net sales development based on market area or by product line, there are no major differences here. However, what I would like to lift is that in the first 9 months, the particularly strong growth was seen in the ready-to-wear category, namely in the first 9 months of the year, our ready-to-wear fashion segment grew by 17%, which then meant that the share of fashion of all our net sales in terms of the product lines grew to 38%.

Our omnichannel store network, of course, constantly develops. And today, 169 Marimekko stores serve our customers in addition to our online stores serving already in 39 countries. And in terms of the number, the highest number of Marimekko stores has already long been in the Asia Pacific region.

Our brand sales in the first 9 months amounted to EUR 286.9 million. And then if we look at our profitability and how it has developed in the third quarter, as mentioned at the start of this presentation, our comparable operating profit improved by a strong 14%, amounting to 24.9% of net sales, which is a very high level. Our operating profit was EUR 12.5 million and the comparable operating profit totaled EUR 12.7 million. Of course, it was the increased net sales that supported the strong operating profit, while then on the other hand, the lower relative sales margin as well as the higher fixed costs had a negative impact on our operating profit.

When we look at the drivers behind the different factors, so the relative sales margin was weakened by the higher discounts than in the comparison period. While on the other hand, then what supported the relative sales margin was the strong product margins. Fixed costs grew to increased personnel expenses, and there are two main reasons behind those. One is the general pay increases in different markets and the other one is the increased salary cost in stores to support the retail growth.

Then when we look at the profitability development from a cumulative viewpoint in the first 9 months, our cumulative operating profit grew by 4% and landed to EUR 23.1 million. The comparable operating profit number was EUR 23.5 million, representing 17.5% of our net sales. Again, very similar drivers behind us in the third quarter. So of course, it was the increased net sales that strengthened the operating profit, while then on the other hand, it was the weakened relative sales margin and the higher fixed cost that had a negative impact on the operating profit development.

In the first 9 months, the relative sales margin was negatively affected, in particular, by the higher discounts than in the comparison period and as earlier estimated by the significantly lower licensing income, but also by unrealized exchange rate differences.

Then again, the operating profit was supported by -- or the relative sales margin was supported by strong product margins. Fixed cost, similarly as in the third quarter increased due to personnel expenses, but also in addition, due to investments in the digital development.

In the third quarter, we continued our determined efforts to build our international brand and to grow and nurture our international customer community. A lot of exciting events took place in the third quarter. For example, we launched collaboration collections with the iconic Finnish brands, Artek and Kalevala jewelry. And these collaborations provided yet again new perspectives or rather new -- provided new forms of timeless art of print making to our customers around the world.

In the third quarter, we also organized 2 fashion shows in Copenhagen Fashion Week, we showcased our creative vision and new collections for summer 2026. And in Bangkok, we celebrated the 10th anniversary of Marimekko in Thailand via a fashion show that showcased our fall collection to our Marimekko community.

We also organized various events around the world, really building up and reinforcing our brand desirability and growing our awareness. For instance, the Field of Flowers touring exhibition that showcases 25 new Marimekko floral print icons of Tomorrow that started its tour from Japan early in the year, started -- continued its journey in the third quarter to Taipei, to Tokyo to Ho Chi Minh City and to Osaka.

Then at the same time, of course, the Marimekko omnichannel store network was developed and a completely new Marimekko store opened in Taipei. And in addition to that, 7 Marimekko pop-up stores, mostly in Asia, delighted our customers and grew our awareness. After the review period, we also celebrated the opening of a new Marimekko flagship store in Hong Kong when a Marimekko store opened on Leighton Road in the busy Causeway Bay area back in 2012, found its new home in a renewed space on the same Leighton Road street.

Asia, of course, plays a really important role in Marimekko's internationalization and growth strategy, and we certainly see a significant growth opportunities in Asia for Marimekko in the long term. Something exciting that took place also in the third quarter was, of course, the lead up to the launch of Marimekko in Paris, namely, we opened our French language version of our pop-up -- of our online store in August and then started to build up our presence in Paris, the most important fashion capital in the world through a pop-up store in Le Bon Marché.

And then after the review period, we launched a new pop-up store also in Galeries Lafayette. And finally, just last week, we celebrated the historical opening of the first ever Marimekko Paris flagship store in Le Marais. Paris, of course, being such an important fashion capital plays an even bigger role in the global Marimekko ecosystem, namely its kind of impact in terms of brand positioning and awareness creation span beyond Europe to also Asia and North America, this way, supporting our wider international growth efforts.

Then moving on to our outlook for 2025. First, a few words in general. So of course, there are still significant uncertainties related to the development of global economy, such as the tensions related to geopolitics and trade relations and the indirect impacts of these tensions and other uncertainties as well as increasing tariffs on the general economic situation may be reflected in consumer confidence, purchasing power and behavior and this way can have a weakening impact on Marimekko.

We're, of course, all the time as part of our normal ways of working, monitoring the development of all these situations and circumstances and we'll adjust our operations and plans if or when needed.

Then a few words about seasonality. So due to the seasonal nature of our business, a major portion of our company's euro-denominated net sales and operating results are traditionally generated during the second half of the year. What is good to always remember is that the timing between the quarters of the nonrecurring promotional deliveries in Finnish wholesale sales and their size typically vary on an annual basis.

And good to remember again that as we have been communicating since the beginning of this year, the licensing income in 2025 is forecasted to be significantly below the previous year's record level.

Then moving on to net sales development, starting from Finland, our important home market. Despite the weak market situation, the net sales in our important home market, Finland, are expected to be approximately at the level of the previous year or increase slightly. The sales in Finland are impacted by the weak general economy and low consumer confidence as well as the development of purchasing power and behavior. In addition, also the tactical operating environment continues to have an impact.

In 2025, so this year, the nonrecurring promotional deliveries in wholesale sales are estimated to be significantly lower than in the comparable year and weighted clearly in the second half of the year.

Then moving on to the international sales. So altogether, we estimate our international sales to grow in 2025. Then when we look at our second largest region, the Asia Pacific region more closely. In the Asia Pacific region, this year, we expect our net sales to be approximately at the level of the previous year or increase slightly. What is good to note is that a significant part of our licensing income in 2024 was recorded as net sales in the Asia Pacific region. And therefore, as a result, the forecast decrease in licensing income in 2025 is estimated to have a weakening impact on net sales in this market area.

Wholesale sales in the Asia Pacific region, which includes our sales to our loose franchise partners, are expected to also increase in 2025 despite the private consumption in China becoming more cautious during the year following the general economic uncertainties. Our long-term growth prospects in the Asia Pacific region remain unchanged. All the brick-and-mortar Marimekko stores and most online stores in Asia are partner-owned. And this year, our aim continues to be to open approximately 10 to 15 new Marimekko stores and shop-in-shops and most of the planned openings will be in Asia as in the many of our -- the preceding years.

Then a few words still about growth investments and costs. So we, of course, develop our business with a long-term view, and our plan is to continue scaling our profitable growth in the upcoming years. Thus, our fixed costs are expected to be up on the previous year and also our marketing are expected to increase. The increased tariffs in the U.S. have a direct impact on only a small part of our business as the entire North American market accounted for 6% of our group's net sales in '24.

And overall, our company has initiated diverse measures to mitigate the negative impacts of the tariffs. The early commitments of product orders from partner suppliers, which is typical of our industry and partly further accentuated due to the different factors, weakens our ability to optimize product orders and respond to rapid changes in demand and supply environment, which also increases risks. We, of course, work actively in all fronts to ensure functioning production and logistics chains to mitigate increased costs and other negative impacts and to avoid delays and to enhance inventory management.

And finally, we reiterate our financial guidance for 2025. So our net sales for 2025 are expected to grow from the previous year, and our comparable operating profit margin is estimated to be approximately some 16% to 19%. Of course, the rapid changes and uncertainties in the global trade policy, the development of consumer confidence and purchasing power in our key markets as well as possible disruptions in global supply chains, among others, cause volatility to the outlook for 2025.

But with these words, I would like to end my presentation and open up for the Q&A and invite Anna and Elina to join me here on the stage.

Thank you, Tiina. Let's start with sort of setting the scene more. So you mentioned the challenging market environment. Can you sort of describe that a bit more? Or are there some specific geographical areas or countries where you can see more difficulties maybe or more generally?

I think this is referring to what we all read in the news every day. So the overall uncertainties impacting the global economy, the tensions in the trade policies, the tariffs and how they may impact the consumer confidence and this way, consumer behavior. So this is what we're referring to when it comes to the more challenging market environment. And then, of course, specifically, we have mentioned that in our important home market in Finland, of course, the weak consumer confidence and overall the tactical nature of the operating environment continues to impact. And that, of course, has a more direct impact to retail sales.

We have a few questions related to retail sales. If one looks at the omnichannel retail sales in total, they were flat year-on-year on Q3. Is there something timing related here? Or should one rather look for country by country, the development or so at least in Finland, there was a small decrease, but in many countries, the retail sales grew also.

Yes. And I think that what I would here highlight is that when we look at the third quarter, our retail sales in the international markets actually increased by 13%. So very strong omnichannel retail development. And actually, the retail sales they developed very positively in most of the international markets. Then in Finland, they fell short in the third quarter of a very strong comparison period. But what is good to remember that also in Finland, when you look at the first 9 months, the omnichannel retail sales grew.

Yes. There was also a slight decrease in the North American figures, both in retail sales and in wholesale sales in the Q3. Should one look there more at the cumulative figures as well? Or is there something specific for Q3?

As we've explained that when it comes to -- when it comes to certain markets like North America and like Europe, where the role of wholesale is particularly important out of the total. There also -- there might be seasonal fluctuations that may impact. So I think that overall, not specifically now, but overall, it's always good to look at the longer-term development, cumulative development. So for example, in North America, cumulatively, our net sales have increased by 5% and there our cumulative retail sales development has been actually double digits, so 10% growth in the first 9 months of the year.

Thanks, Tiina. Maybe I can invite Elina to discuss a bit brand sales. We have a few questions around them. So first of all, overall, why are brand sales down both Q3 and year-to-date, especially outside Finland? And in more specifically in Asia Pacific. Is there something behind this? Or will that pick up at the latter part of the year, the remaining months?

Okay. So let me start from explaining first like why do we actually report this kind of KPI as brand sales. So we actually want to show the reach of the brand by announcing this kind of brand sales KPI. And this is illustrating how much estimated retail value sales do we have in each of the periods. And that is calculated by adding to our retail sales, sales, the estimated value of our wholesale channels sales in their retail value.

And then in addition to that, we also the estimated value of the licensed products in their retail value. And regarding licensed products, they are then recorded while the products are sold in the world. So that is different a little bit from the -- how do we actually otherwise book the license income, which is then, of course, booked as according to the normal revenue recognition. But here, we want to really show the reach of the Marimekko products in a larger context. So actually, you can see that there can be quite a deviations also between the net sales and the brand sales, but that is related for the different timings of the retail sales.

So I'm not like -- you shouldn't think too much about this sort of minus numbers here. And regarding licensing, maybe I could also continue a little bit from that perspective that, of course, like as we've talked many times, we've got like 2 different kinds of licensing, more kind of traditional licensing, where we have like more, so to say, contracts which are like continuing, but then we have this brand collaboration licensing contracts, which are not something that will be similar every year.

And that is also related also for the negotiation rhythms and that's different with different companies. So we don't know at the start of the year exactly how much licensing income we will get during that year. So that is one of the income streams as well that we need to partially forecast ourselves. And they are also linked partially with the licensing partner sales volumes as well.

We could actually continue with as there are a couple of questions related to licensing income and the outlook for this year.

Yes.

As you said, those are sort of partly they are estimated revenues. And at the beginning of the year, Marimekko guided that the licensing income will be considerably lower this year. And at that time, it was also estimated that the net sales in the Asia Pacific region would grow. And now the outlook for the Asia Pacific region is to be somewhat slightly above or at the previous year's level. So what has changed from the end of June or August period when Q2 results were published until now?

So of course, like the -- it's like a couple of months since we released the Q2 results, but exactly like certain things like when we do the sales forecasting for all of the channels and then we gather all our like best understanding how the sales will develop. So that is covering all of the channels. But then, of course, we have mentioned something about regarding the China in special, like the consumer sentiment there. But I would say that it's coming from different streams.

And I think in the early part of the year, when we gave the market outlook, we already then estimated that this year, after the 2 record level years in licensing, this year will be significantly lower. Then it's good to remember that licensing income consists of several different kinds of agreements, traditional licensing, brand collaboration, so forth. And at this point in time of the year, as we're starting to be in the year-end, we have now specified the impact of the licensing income to have a weakening impact on the Asia Pacific net sales. So it's natural for us at this point in time of the year to specify it.

Looking at the Asia region, are there some countries that you've seen a weaker development than you expected, for example, in China? Or has the demand overall there decreased since the August or is there something else that one should be looked at in the Asia Pacific region?

So actually, when we look at the Asia Pacific region, so if we look at the retail, wholesale and licensing, in wholesale sales in the Asia Pacific region, we have our sales to our loose franchise partners in Asia that operate the Marimekko omnichannel retail there in the most parts. And what we have also specified today that also in 2025, our wholesale sales in the Asia Pacific region is estimated to grow even despite the fact that we can see that during the course of the year, the private consumption in China has become more cautious due to the general macroeconomic uncertainty. So I think good development there despite all the uncertainties in the world.

There are still a couple of questions here. But if you have questions in mind, now would be a good time to type them in. One question related to Paris flagship store. Were you satisfied with the launch? How has it performed? And can one expect it to contribute to the sales already in Q4?

So first of all, I had the pleasure to be in Paris for the launch of the historical first-ever Marimekko Paris flagship store. So I can say that having experienced a more than 100-meter queue of friends of the brand lining up to the store before we opened it, I think that really symbolized a very strong start and successful start for starting to really evolve our presence in the most important fashion capital of the year.

As mentioned already in my presentation, Paris has a much bigger impact or presence in Paris has a much bigger impact than just impact in Paris or in France, namely because of the role of the city and its attraction both to the local customers, but to a very global audience of tourists, we can see that the positioning and the brand awareness effects of our presence in Paris can expand even to Asia and even to North America. And this way, through the awareness, through the positioning, through the strengthening of the Marimekko message and the differentiating message, we can see that it will support our long-term scaling efforts in a much wider area.

Marimekko is currently on its scale strategy period, where one of the objectives is, of course, the international expansion. And we are now at halfway point sort of. So are you happy with how things are progressing? Or are there any planned adjustments for the upcoming years? And as a final question, is it possible to mention also are some of the 5 key success factors in the strategy? Are some of those sort of more critical to Marimekko than the others, for example?

So first of all, we are very happy about how we have been progressing in our scale strategy term that is from 2023 to 2027. And even despite the volatilities happening in the world, in the macroeconomy, the headwinds, we have been successfully continuously able to positively develop and grow our business and the brand phenomenon. And for example, in the first 9 months of this year, grow our international sales by 8%. So I'm very happy with that development, and we're very eager and excited and committed to continue our determined efforts and investments to scale up our growth.

And then to the follow-up question with regards to the -- whether some of the key success factors, strategic success factors in the scale strategy are more important than others. Actually, these 5 key strategic success factors from sustainability, creative vision, accelerating growth, especially in Asia, the love for Marimekko Life and the NTN digitality, they form one entity. So we -- it's important that we develop and progress in all of them.

Then if I had to name one thing that typically is the most important of it all, it is, of course, the brand and the product. So the creative vision to speak to an even wider audience. In the end, that's the heart of it all. And then everything else is there to support in kind of making Marimekko more accessible and spreading our Marimekko phenomenon all around the world.

Thank you, Tiina. Thank you, Elina. Thank you for joining us, and we hope to see you again in February to discuss the full year results from 2025.