Utenos Trikotažas earned EUR 6.4 million revenue in Q1 2021
Production and services sales of the Utenos Trikotažas Group owned by SBA in Q1 2021 totaled EUR 6.4 million, i.e., 13.6% less than a year ago when the Group’s sales totaled EUR 7.5 million. Exports of the Group accounted for 84.7% of their production.
“Considering the pandemic fatigue worldwide and the production capacity fluctuations due to the lockdown restrictions, the performance in the first quarter was better than anticipated. While Q1 2020 was only partly affected by the pandemic, in Q1 2021 we had to face total lockdown and constant uncertainty. As the vaccination process is gradually gaining momentum and the lockdown conditions are being eased, there are more positive signs for subsequent quarters of the year,” Petras Jašinskas, Managing Director of Utenos Trikotažas, said.
Meanwhile, the company of Utenos Trikotažas earned EUR 5.8 million in Q1 2021. Sales revenue decreased by EUR 0.9 million or 12.9% compared to Q1 2020. The share of the company’s income from export sales amounted to 83.8% of the total revenue.
Signs of recovery and new export opportunities
According to Jašinskas, last year, losses in export sales caused by the lockdown and closure of Utenos Trikotažas shops were partly offset by online sales, including huge demand for face masks. This year, the demand for face masks has naturally decreased, therefore the strategic focus has been fully directed to the export markets.
“The year of the pandemic made us focus on what defines the competitive advantage of Utenos Trikotažas – sustainable solutions at all stages of production, textile innovations and production efficiency. As customers massively shift towards environmentally friendly materials, they require traceability throughout the supply chain. We are facing a growing demand for the textile manufacturer to be fast, flexible and able to produce in smaller batches. Our input in these areas has been strong, therefore we managed to further increase our portfolio of customers focused on sustainable production”
Petras Jašinskas, CEO of Utenos Trikotažas
The export targets of Utena Trikotažas set at the beginning of the year were met and even exceeded. Compared to Q1 2021, sales in the largest sales segment – on-demand manufacturing – decreased by 7.5% to EUR 5 million in Q1 2021. New customers attracted during the pandemic year continue their production with Utenos Trikotažas, which provides a basis for further export development.
Impact of the pandemic and lockdown restrictions on performance
Restricted operations of Utenos Trikotažas shops due to the lockdown and the decrease in the demand for face masks has affected sales of Utenos Trikotažas brands UTENOS and ABOUT. The sales revenue of the brands decreased by 33.4% compared to last year, totaling EUR 0.8 million. The sales
revenue of Šatrija, a subsidiary of Utenos Trikotažas which produces functional-technical clothing, decreased by 23.5%.
In Q1 2021, the Utenos Trikotažas Group incurred EUR 640 thousand pre-tax loss compared to EUR 200,000 pre-tax loss during the same period last year. Meanwhile, the company Utenos Trikotažas incurred EUR 688 thousand pre-tax loss compared to EUR 76 thousand pre-tax profit during the same period last year.
The Group’s EBITDA was negative and stood at EUR 456 thousand in Q1 this year or EUR 912 thousand less compared to the same period last year. The EBITDA of the company Utenos Trikotažas was also negative and stood at EUR 507 thousand or EUR 747 thousand less than in Q1 2020. These indicators were significantly affected by fluctuations in the production capacity caused by the pandemic and the costs incurred to compensate them.