Press releases

• Organic Growth of 1.7% in 2015
• ‘Results in line with strategy’ – CEO

Lenzburg, April 8, 2016: Swiss food company Hero, on a mission to delight consumers by conserving the goodness of nature, has announced that its Operating Profit increased by 66% to CHF 108 million in 2015 when compared to the previous year. The Operating Profit Margin nearly doubled, up from 4.8% to 8.6%, boosting operating profitability, while Organic Growth for 2015 stood at 1.7%.

Portfolio optimization, realized cost efficiencies, as well reduced sugar and milk prices increased gross profit. In addition, contrary to recent years, there was no need for impairment charges. As a result, Gross Profit Margin increased from 33.4% in 2014 to 38.4% in 2015.

The results of the Group were seriously affected by the decision taken at the beginning of last year by the Swiss National Bank (SNB) to abandon the Swiss franc minimum exchange rate. Group sales in 2015 stood at CHF 1.26 billion, down from CHF 1.34 billion a year earlier.

“The year was characterized by challenging market conditions, compounded further by the SNB decision. Despite all this, we were able to produce strongly improved results and can report that 2015 was an encouraging step towards sustainable profitable growth. The results are perfectly in line with our strategy,” Rob Versloot, CEO Hero Group said.

Versloot said the Group was cautiously optimistic about the current year despite the difficult and challenging market conditions. “We understand and appreciate that we are operating in difficult and complex environments and there are certain risks we face. These vary from unstable political regions to currency fluctuations. Having said that, we believe our mission, vision and strategy are firm and clear, allowing us to remain focused on our journey towards profitable growth,” the Hero Group CEO said.

Versloot said the Group was aiming to continue unlocking the synergies and creating further alignment between the different companies in the organization in line with the Group mission, vision and strategy. He expects both organic growth and operating margin to increase further in 2016.

About Hero Group
The Hero Group is an international food company focused on branded nutritional food products. The company was founded in 1886 in Lenzburg, Switzerland, where its headquarters are still located today. Hero's main core product categories of Baby and Toddler Food and Milks, Jams, and Cereal Bars are complemented by its activities in the Decoration and Gluten-free product segments. The Group, which lives by its mission to delight consumers by conserving the goodness of nature, boasts a global footprint and its portfolio consists of many well-known international and local brands. In 2015, the Group generated revenues of CHF 1.26 billion.

Press contact
Stephen Chetcuti
Corporate Communications Manager
+41 (0)79 616 1467
stephen.chetcuti@hero.ch