Dutch healthy snack manufacturer Wessanen boosted both its profit and turnover in 2017. However, despite a nearly 10 % increase, the company failed to live up to analysts’ expectations.
Strong growth for own labels
The company’s 2017 turnover reached 626 million euro, up 9.8 %, which was slightly below what analysts had forecast. The main culprit was its smaller fourth quarter growth, at merely 4.1 %. For its full fiscal year, Wessanen had a 36 million euro net profit (up 58 %). A large part of its strong growth was because of Spanish Biogran’s acquisition in late 2016.
Its own labels generated an additional 7.7 % in turnover and that is also a major focus for Wessanen for the current fiscal year. The result is that it will manufacture fewer private labels in store chains. “Our own labels grew 7.7 % in 2017 and many of them even achieved double-digit growth. When it comes to private labels and distribution, we have experienced a sizeable setback, because of our strategy to focus on our own labels”, CEO Christophe Barnouin said.
