Stockmann - Company Announcement

Stockmann plans management buyout of Seppälä

Helsinki, Finland, 2015-02-02 07:30 CET (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- STOCKMANN plc,
Company Announcement 2.2.2015 at 8:30 EET 

Stockmann has signed a memorandum of understanding regarding the selling of its
subsidiary, Seppälä Oy, in a management buyout to Seppälä's current CEO,
Eveliina Melentjeff and her husband Timo Melentjeff. The transaction will take
place on 1 April 2015 and will cover 82 Seppälä stores in Finland and 20 in
Estonia. 

According to its new strategy, Stockmann will focus on its key businesses,
Stockmann Retail, Real Estate and Lindex, and will gradually withdraw from its
other businesses. Going forward, Seppälä will have a committed owner that is
fully focused on rejuvenating Seppälä's operations in its main markets. 

”This transaction will secure the continuity of the Seppälä brand and its over
80-year heritage. Seppälä will continue to have the widest network of fashion
stores in Finland. The buyout will also  help to sustain a business which will
employ around 500 people in Finland, and with these dedicated fashion experts
we will put Seppälä back in people's minds,” says Eveliina Melentjeff, CEO of
Seppälä. 

After the codetermination negotiations that ended in December, Seppälä decided
to downsize its store network by 41 stores in Finland and the reductions will
affect approx. 200 people in the stores. Seppälä will continue to have over 100
stores in Finland and Estonia, and will employ around 600 people in these two
countries. The remaining stores in Latvia, Lithuania and Russia will be closed
down. 

Seppälä's revenue in 2014 was EUR 92.6 million. The purchase price of Seppälä
will not have a significant effect on Stockmann's earnings. Financial result
including non-recurring expenses, which mainly relate to lease liabilities of
the closing stores, will be specified in Stockmann's 2014 Financial Statement
Bulletin on 13 February 2015. 

Press conference
Seppälä and Stockmann will arrange a press briefing today, 2 February 2015 at
13:00 EET, in Seppälä's store in the Jumbo shopping centre (1st floor) in
Vantaa. Seppälä's CEO Eveliina Melentjeff and Stockmann's Chief Strategy
Officer Kjell Sundström will be present. Please register for the event by
e-mail info@stockmann.com or by phone +358 9 121 3089. 

Further information:
Eveliina Melentjeff, CEO, Seppälä, tel. +358 9 121 7280
Kjell Sundström, Chief Strategy Officer, Stockmann, tel. +358 9 121 5877
Nora Malin, Director, Corporate Communications, Stockmann, tel. +358 9 121 3558

www.stockmanngroup.com


STOCKMANN plc

Per Thelin
CEO


Distribution:
Nasdaq Helsinki
Principal media