Clas Ohlson AB

STO:CLAS B

Q3-2025 Earnings Call

[Operator]

Welcome to the Clas Ohlson Q3 2024-2025 Report Presentation. [Operator Instructions]



Now I will hand the conference over to CEO, Kristofer Tonstrom; and CFO, Pernilla Walfridsson.

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the Clas Ohlson Q3 report presentation. My name is Kristofer Tonstrom, I'm the President and CEO, and I'm here with Pernilla Walfridsson, CFO. So here's the agenda for today. We will go through a business update, and then Pernilla will lead us through the financial developments. And I will cover the events after the reporting period and summary, and then we will move into Q&A. 



Highlighting the third quarter and the first 9 months of our fiscal year. The third quarter was another strong quarter from a sales point of view, closing at 13% organic growth at a bit more than SEK 3.8 billion. We're also reporting our online sales growth today, and it came in at plus 22%, so a significant increase versus the last quarter.



Looking at operating profit, we closed at SEK 533 million, which is an increase of 30% versus last year, resulting in an operating margin of 14.3%. When it comes to the financial position, we're in a strong position. We had an operating cash flow of close to SEK 1.9 billion, and we are ending the quarter with a net cash position of approximately SEK 1.2 billion, resulting in a net debt to EBITDA of minus 1. 



Earnings per share for the first 3 quarters amounts to SEK 12.65 versus SEK 7.39 last year. We also reported our February sales today, and we'll come back to those a bit in detail, but the growth has continued with 5% organic growth. And here, we also have a calendar effect driven by the leap year last year that had an impact of approximately 4%. So we'll come back to February. So those are the headlines.



And we'll now move into the business update, and we'll start with our strategic position. So all in all, there are 3 big areas that we view as our competitive advantages, and we're consistently focusing and investing in those to make us more and more unique. It's all about the Clas Ohlson ABC. It's the assortment, it's the brand, and it's the customer meeting and the combination of the 3.



And the way we're leveraging this is to ensure that we differentiate ourselves and that we focus on multiple niches. Over the last few years, we have gone from being a generalist retailer to more a multi-niche player. And you can see the 5 niches at the bottom, and I'll come back to those in a second.



The second thing is that we're doing a lot of work to consistently ensure that our operating model becomes more effective. We want to be cost-competitive in the market and ensure that we are delivering a strong free cash flow that we can then reinvest into making the business even stronger. When it comes to our targets, we have an ambition to deliver organic growth of 5% every year and deliver a 7% to 9% operating margin. And we are also executing on our sustainability agenda and want to also be a leader in that sense.



Now looking a little bit at some of the key activities across the third quarter. So as we started this year, 9 months ago, we laid out 3 big growth drivers for the year. And I think we can conclude that those 3 growth drivers in combination has delivered results. First of all, when it comes to assortment, we want to become relevant 12 months per year. And right now, looking at the business, all prioritized niches are driving growth. So it's broad-based. We have also done a lot of work over the last few years to ensure that we do have what we call an all-weather portfolio to ensure that we are flexible. We have many legs to stand on, no matter what happens outside of the company. 



We've also had a continued very high pace when it comes to launching new products. I'll share a couple of examples later, but we are becoming more and more of an executional machine when it comes to constantly renewing our assortment, driving relevance and traffic while, of course, also always focusing on the profitable core assortment that has a relevance all year round.



The second big growth driver is our online business. And here, we do see that we're reporting 22% growth in the quarter. This part of the business is and should be a profitable growth driver. And we also see that now approximately 1/5 of the total Clas Ohlson sales actually goes online, including the acquired Spares business. 



Last but not least, we continuously work on making our store network more robust. Today, we have reported our like-for-like development. And during the quarter, we saw 9% like-for-like development in our existing store network. We're also on track when it comes to store openings. We had the ambition to net add 10 stores this year, and we're definitely on track for that. And the ambition as we kick off our new year 1st of May is to continue this pace also in the coming year. 



Then looking at the enablers, we do have a lot of focus also on our customer communication. It's a key way for us to build our brand. The brand stands strong. And we do see that we are growing in terms of mental availability with our key customers when it comes to our focus areas. So the niches or consumer missions that we call them internally, they are becoming more and more top of mind for customers. And it's been growing across countries, but we especially see positive development now in Finland. 



The second area is to ensure we have a very competitive cost base. We have done lots of changes over the last few years. And the key is to not add any cost and rather focus on making the organization and the business more and more efficient for every day that goes by. And last but not least, when it comes to sustainability, one of the key areas for us is to ensure that the core business model is becoming more and more sustainable. It's all about selling need-based products that you really will use for a long time. And in the case if the product breaks, we should offer a spare part to ensure that you don't have to buy new. And in the quarter, we saw our spare parts business, excluding spares, grow 29%. 



Then we move into the key areas that we look at to judge how we're developing versus our ABC starting with the product reviews, which is a measurement to ensure that our product quality lives up to expectations. Here, we are continuously delivering very strong results. We're constantly between 4 and 5 in terms of score between 1 and 5. And we also get a lot of customer reviews on the assortment. So all in all, we are delivering on the product quality aspect. 



The second aspect, when it comes to the brand, we want to be very affordable. We want to ensure that we have a price position in the market that is competitive, and we can also see this quarter that we are standing strong in terms of affordability. Last but not least, delivering exceptional customer service is crucial for us. And we have an NPS that is constantly between 55 and 60. And looking at the quarter, the results were strong. We're usually slightly lower in Q3, given the amount of customers that we're welcoming, but very, very solid results. 



Then moving on to just laying out the ground a bit on the niches. We do have our 5 focus areas: tidy up your home, light up your home, conscious home environment, connect and fix. And as I mentioned before, we do see growth across those areas. There's a lot of work happening to progress and evolve the assortment, and we've also done a few initiatives on the Spares Group recently. For example, we launched Batteriexperten into Denmark a few weeks ago. So a lot of things happening on the assortment.



And just to lay out a couple of examples from the quarter. Here are some products and news that have been launched and some examples across missions. So we can see a well-balanced range of new Clas Ohlson products like the new LXC series that we're launching, also combined with great brands that we're attracting into Clas Ohlson. We just announced our partnership with Husqvarna being the first retailer to offer the Husqvarna battery range across our business. 



We've also launched a lot of new products within tidy up your home with storage boxes for jewellery, et cetera. We also just launched a new brand within mobile accessories. And as you can tell on the right, there are also lots of products within conscious with electricity, storage, et cetera, that also complements the business really well. Last but not least, we have a lot of news in terms of light up your home, and that has really driven the business across January, so closing out Christmas and then customers replacing Christmas lights with other lighting.



So, all in all, high pace, good balance between Clas Ohlson products and well-known A brands. It gives us an opportunity to build a solid, good, better, best-price ladder, and it also gives us a lot of flexibility to have lots of legs to stand on as we are moving forward. 



Last but not least, we have been talking about making the assortment relevant 12 months a year. I think January is a good example on the progress that we're making. Historically, January was always a bit of a slower month for Clas Ohlson post-Christmas, and we used to be around SEK 600 million in revenue. This year, we reported just above SEK 900 million. So January is also now progressing towards becoming SEK 1 billion month. And I do think this is a good example of our flexibility and relevance within the assortment that we can shift and be relevant 12 months a year, and that work continues.



So, with that, I'll hand over to Pernilla to take us through the financial developments.

[Pernilla Walfridsson, executive]

Thank you, Kristofer, and good morning, everyone. Let's dive into the figures of a very strong Q3. Total sales were up 13%, all of which relates to organic growth, meaning that we did not have any currency effects on sales in Q3. Looking at organic growth in detail, 9% comes from like-for-like, and 4% comes from new stores. Online sales growth in the quarter was exceptionally strong, up 22%, including Spares Group, which, as of November, is part of the base for organic growth. Total online sales were SEK 717 million, of which SEK 204 million relates to sales in Spares Group. Online share of total sales is now 19%, rolling 12 months. 



Looking at sales per market, we had fantastic figures in Sweden and Norway, but also worth highlighting that Finland was on par with our long-term growth target in the third quarter. Looking at some macro trends impacting our business, I think it is fair to say that the volatility remains, and our job is to execute on proactive measures such as pricing, sourcing and sales mix.



For instance, we did have negative impact from the previous spike in sea freight during the quarter but managed to offset this by lowering costs in other parts of our sourcing and transportation chain. That said, the previously higher prices for transport will keep affecting us also going forward as there are lag effects. But the current more positive development in sea freight will benefit us later on. 



When it comes to currencies, the weak NOK impact us immediately due to our large share of sales in Norway, and the U.S. dollar has been challenging for quite some time. After the end of the quarter, both NOK and U.S. dollar have decreased compared to the SEK, as we can see on the dotted line in the graph, underlying the previously mentioned volatility. The impact of the factors previously mentioned is very much in focus when looking at the gross margin.



Product and price mix was key as we managed to increase the gross margin by 0.9 percentage points to 39.3%. Cost for sea freight was up during the quarter, but by being successful in other part of sourcing and transportation, we more than compensated for the higher sea freight. Currency effects were neutral during the quarter. 



The income statement shows a great leap in profit. Operating profit amounted to SEK 553 million in the quarter and slightly more than SEK 1 billion for the 9-month period. And just as a reminder, comparables for the 9 months also include last year's write-down of IT system and costs relating to reorganization. The EPS for the quarter was SEK 6.72, an increase from SEK 5.07 in last year's Q3.



Also, the development of the inventory is positive. New stores and more products have, of course, contributed to increases in inventory, but we have mitigated this with higher sales and efficiency in inventory management, resulting in an inventory on the same level as last year. 



We had a strong cash flow during the 9-month period. Cash flow from operating activities totaled SEK 1.9 billion compared to SEK 1.6 billion last year. Free cash flow for the 9-month period almost doubled to SEK 1.35 billion, but last year's figures were affected by the acquisition of Spares Group. As previously stated, we define free cash flow as cash flow after investing activities, including amortization of lease liabilities. Net debt to EBITDA, excluding IFRS 16, was minus 1.0. So we maintained a net cash position and well in line with our financial targets.



By that, I hand over to Kristofer.

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

Thank you, Pernilla. So moving into the events at the reporting period, focusing on the February sales that we also reported today. So all in all, the total sales was up 4% to SEK 715 million and of which 5% was organic growth, and then we had a currency effect of 1% relating back to what Pernilla just talked about when it comes to the Norwegian kroner.



As I briefly mentioned in the beginning, there was also a calendar effect due to the leap year last year, so one day less this year so underlying was closer to 9%. Looking at the markets, Sweden and Norway, 5% organic, Finland flat and Spares grew 16%, continuing the good progress there. Looking at the store network, we have 14 stores more as we closed February this year versus last year.



So wrapping up, before moving into Q&A. It's all about being consistent and ensure that we continue to execute. We laid out our strategy approximately 3 years ago, and we are executing on that. And obviously, there are a lot of things to consistently and continuously improve. First of all, it's all about ensuring that the assortment progress continues. We know that new products, it drives sales and it drives visits and it drives relevance, it builds the brand and makes us very top of mind with our customers. It's critical for us to ensure that we continue to be competitive when it comes to pricing.



And also, as I laid out during the -- looking at the different news we're launching, also ensuring that we do have a solid price ladder with lots of different options depending on your needs as a customer. It's also critical to ensure that we, with quality, continue to build out our store network. It's both adding new stores. And as I said earlier, we're -- the ambition is to continue with the same pace as we have done over the last couple of years, but it's also about improving the store network that we currently have. And then continuously fueling the profitable and growing online business so that we continue to be exactly where the customer wants us to be.



Last but not least, the macro environment is obviously volatile, and it's key for us to focus on the things we can influence, which is very much our own costs and ensuring that we do stay in a very strong financial position so that we can reinvest into building a stronger company also moving forward.



So with that, we'll move into Q&A.

[Operator]

[Operator Instructions] The next question comes from Niklas Ekman from Carnegie.

[Niklas Ekman, analyst]

A couple of questions from my end. Firstly, if I could start on February sales, realizing, of course, the leap year effect here, but still even adjusting for that, this is a bit slower growth than you've seen in previous months and particularly what we saw in Q3 with growth rates of 13%. Do you see any particular reason for this sequential slowdown? Is there less pent-up demand? Was there any weather effect, anything else or any other reason to assume that the growth rate might be a little bit lower in the coming quarters compared to the exceptionally strong growth you saw here in Q3?

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

Good morning, Niklas. So looking at February sales, no big particular reasons or any differences versus previous months. We are happy with the underlying progress. We also need to remember, February is a bit of a transition month for us as we move out of the winter season into the spring season. So of course, there might be some here and there, weather effects, et cetera. But nothing significant has changed versus the past. We rather believe that the underlying development continues to be strong, and we continue to be relevant also in the month of February.



Looking ahead, as you say, we have had exceptional growth over the last couple of years, and our ambition is to continue growing. And as laid out, obviously, the ambition is to have high-quality growth, high-value growth. The target is at least 5% organic over also the coming years. And given that the base has evolved, we used to be a bit more than SEK 8 billion 5 years ago. Now rolling 12 months, we're a SEK 11.5 billion revenue company. So of course, the 5% in absolute terms becomes higher and higher. And it's critical to ensure that the growth we're adding is high value and value creating, not just running after sales for the sake of it.

[Niklas Ekman, analyst]

And can I also ask about gross margin here? Obviously, it was up quite a lot in this quarter despite higher freight costs. How do you see this over the coming quarters? And obviously, freight, dollar and everything has moved lower recently. But with the lag you're seeing, do you expect more headwinds in Q4 and possibly Q1 or was Q3 the quarter with the greatest headwinds from the previous sharp rise in freight costs?

[Pernilla Walfridsson, executive]

As we have -- we talked a bit about that before, and we see -- we will continue to see a headwind from freight costs also in Q4. So Q3 and Q4, we will see that effect.

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

And then maybe to just add on that. And then, of course, it will depend a lot also what happens with the Norwegian kroner now moving into the fourth quarter. But obviously, the sea transportation cost is going in the right direction. So depending on what happens, that might be a positive moving forward. But that's a bit outlook.

[Niklas Ekman, analyst]

Okay. Clear. I'm also curious about your margin target, which you reiterate here, the 7% to 9% margin target. And on a rolling 12-month basis, you're now at 9.9%. So you are significantly above the upper end of that range. Is this still a relevant target or do you see risk that the margins you're reporting right now are exceptionally high and difficult to sustain or can you just elaborate on your thoughts here?

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

Yes. So the targets are unchanged. And this is obviously something that is the long-term ambition to always find a balance between high-value growth and a consistently solid margin between 7% to 9%. Now we are, as you say, on the upper or even above the target. There are no specific things that we are doing that will immediately impact this in the short term. But again, the longer-term ambition is to continue to be within this range. So that's where we are right now.

[Niklas Ekman, analyst]

Okay. Clear. Also on store openings. You mentioned here your ambition to continue to have a high store opening pace into the new year. But I see now you have 3 openings planned for the spring and 1 for the autumn. And that 1 autumn is the only you have for the next financial year. What do you think of your potential to continue to open at least 10 stores in '25, '26?

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

In general, we're very confident in the ability to continue. And obviously, the 1 store you mentioned is the one where there is a signed contract. Obviously, we have lots of discussions and dialogues ongoing. And so we're very confident that we can continue progressing our store network.



And then as we usually talk about to us, the key thing is quality versus quantity. We believe that we will hit around 10 stores. It might be plus 1, minus 1. It might be small differences depending on exactly the locations. The key for us is to ensure that every store is a sound financial investment. It should be good not only year 1, it should be good 5 years from now, 10 years from now. So we're going after this in a strategic way to ensure that we are not investing in long-term, the wrong locations. So quality over quantity, but we're confident that we can continue the pace that we have seen over the last couple of years.

[Operator]

The next question comes from Magnus Raman from Kepler Cheuvreux.

[Magnus Råman, analyst]

Maybe I can start with tying into the question on growth agenda. You mentioned here on the organic growth agenda that you have plenty of discussions ongoing for potential new sites. How about on the sort of possible acquired-driven growth agenda and also in the backdrop of your balance sheet, what type of -- how much of discussions ongoing do you see there? And do you have any view of sort of multiple for possible targets if they're potentially up or down as of the recent developments?

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

So just to be clear, looking at the targets moving ahead, there are no assumptions of further M&A within those targets. But I think we have shown with the acquisition of Spares now almost 1.5 years ago that we are very open to look at opportunities. But there's nothing in the pipeline right now, but we want to be in a strong financial position to give us obviously options, but nothing here and now and the targets do not assume that we do further things. 



Maybe lastly, I think the critical thing, looking at Spares, what really made a lot of sense was that this was from a financial point of view, the right thing to do, but it was also strategically a way for us to further strengthen within one critical niche, which is the whole connect and tech accessories, et cetera. So it made a lot of sense from lots of different perspectives. So obviously, as we look ahead, if there are similar opportunities, we will not rule that out.

[Magnus Råman, analyst]

Right. I hear you. But then as it relates to your sort of capital structure, do you think that this argument having a preparedness for potential opportunities going forward would be sort of enough of argument for you to carry potentially too much of cash on the balance sheet over like a several year period?

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

So of course, as a starting point, we want to be always in a very strong position financially, which obviously we are right now. The second thing is that we want to have the flexibility to invest in our own business to build it and make it stronger. But of course, it's also about balancing and ensuring that we can deliver clear shareholder value. So we have, of course, our dividend policy and the Board will make a decision on that closer to the summer. But all in all, we're happy with the financial position, and we want to be in a strong position. But of course, as always, it's a balanced act to ensure that we deliver optimal value both in the short and the long term.

[Magnus Råman, analyst]

All right. Great. And then also coming back to the current trading. I mean, if you look firstly in the Nordics specifically, we have witnessed a deterioration again of consumer confidence numbers as of recently? And also from a broader perspective, we have seen other retailers now quite recently reporting weaker current trading numbers, i.e., February sales numbers. 



So in the light of these, could you perhaps again comment on your February sales in terms of, I mean, the traffic numbers that you witnessed, for example, is there any change there? I mean, essentially, the slowdown, is that driven also by a reduction in traffic? Or are there any other factors that you would highlight rather?

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

So I think looking at where we are right now, as you lay out, obviously, the external environment has been challenging for a couple of years now. And I think we have shown that we can go against that trend by focusing on the things that we can influence. I wouldn't make too many conclusions on a single month when it comes to February. As I said earlier, we were happy with the development in February. There hasn't been any big changes versus the months we have seen before. 



But of course, as I said as well, February is a bit of a transition month for us from winter to spring. But also, as you highlight, the external environment is not in the short term, indicating a big shift. So obviously, it's continuously extremely important for us to focus on the things we can influence with our customers, et cetera. But I wouldn't make too big conclusions on a separate month right now.

[Magnus Råman, analyst]

Fair enough. Great. And then maybe just one also on timing short term here and calendar. If you could elaborate on how you view the effects from Easter this year relative next when we look into March and April sales?

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

Yes. So obviously, Easter always has an impact. I don't think any big things to highlight right now versus last year looking at the calendar. But yes, so nothing big in terms of shifts, but let us come back to that if there's anything. I don't think there's any big things now. Easter was in the same month last year. And usually, that is what drives the development. So no big calendar effect is expected.

[Magnus Råman, analyst]

All right. Great. Just a final one for me before getting back in the queue. The currency movements here with the big currency movements and you received questions on this already. But I mean, if we look at that overall sensitivity analysis for your results, is it fair to assume that the shift in or the weakening of the Norwegian kroner versus the SEK outweighs a potential stronger SEK versus euro and the dollar, if all these changes would be sort of the same percentage?

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

Yes, that's correct. So we have the sensitivity analysis in the annual report, and that outlines if the dollar moves plus/minus 10% has an impact of SEK 144 million versus then if the NOK moves 10% up and down has an impact of SEK 224 million. So you're right that the Norwegian kroner has a bigger impact than the dollar. Both are obviously important. But in relation to the dollar, the Norwegian kroner is even bigger given the size we have in Norway.

[Pernilla Walfridsson, executive]

And we also see the effect of the NOK quicker. I mean, the U.S. dollar, then we have the inventory turn also. So that takes a bit more time before we see it in the profit and loss.

[Magnus Råman, analyst]

Yes. That's helpful. So given the big improvements now and for us to to work on the modeling of margin progression near term. As I hear you, we would assume sort of a net negative effect in the near term and then the possible or the sort of the possible positive transactional effect if it doesn't go all the way to the end consumer would be seen at a later stage.

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

Yes, that's correct.

[Operator]

[Operator Instructions] The next question comes from Niklas Ekman from Carnegie.

[Niklas Ekman, analyst]

Yes, a follow-up here. I'm curious about Finland and what potential you're seeing in that market. And the reason for asking, of course, is you have seen an improvement in the Finnish market now after years of weakness, but the growth rates are still much lower than what you're seeing in Sweden and Norway. And in all, sales per store in Finland seems to be at least 30% lower than what you're delivering in Sweden and Norway.



Is this a key priority for you for the next few years to really get the Finnish market moving? Are there huge obstacles in that market that prevent you from ever getting to the same position in Sweden and Norway? Or just what is your view on Finland? Is that a major important market for you? Or is your main focus still on Sweden and Norway?

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

So Finland is a very important market to us. As you outlined, obviously, it's the smallest of the 3, and we do not yet have the scale that we would like to have in Finland. Looking also at the recent 2 quarters, we have seen organic growth picking up being closer to 4%, 5%, in line with our overall growth ambitions. So it's going in the right direction. But the progress is not as strong as in Sweden and Norway as I outlined. We also have done work to optimize the store footprint in Finland.



So we have a net negative on the Finnish store network. And what we're currently focused on is the assortment in Finland to ensure that we become even more relevant. So we do have, of course, an ambition to also win in Finland. But as you say, we do not have the scale yet, and we do not expect it to be a quick win. But we do see that we are extremely relevant on a couple of the niches with our key consumer and customer groups.



And as I outlined during the presentation, we see that mental availability within a couple of the niches are growing and going in the right direction. So Finland continues to be important, and we want to grow it, but we're not expecting a quick win. It's really about continuously building on our strengths to make the brand even more relevant in the Finnish market.

[Operator]

The next question comes from Magnus Raman from Kepler Cheuvreux.

[Magnus Råman, analyst]

Maybe I can just follow up on Finland first here. Can you provide your remarks on the union negotiations and the sort of wage increases, where did it end up? And how do you view that in terms of sort of your operating costs going forward in Finland?

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

Yes. So obviously, as you highlight, there has been lots of ongoing negotiations and discussions in Finland. It closed now last week. And if I remember correctly, it closed at 2.6%, which was more or less in line with our expectations. So obviously, salary inflation has been high over the last couple of years, and it continues, but not a big surprise or disruption from a Clas Ohlson point of view. But of course, it's positive that it's been closed.

[Magnus Råman, analyst]

Great. And those 2.6% was the annual rate of a longer time period, right? So you will have some visibility on salary costs for 2 or 3 years out in time?

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

Exactly. I don't have the numbers in front of me, but I think that's correct.

[Magnus Råman, analyst]

Great. And then just a final one on me from here, more a broader also margin connected question, again, about your improvements in the product/price mix that you have elaborated on as a driver to your margin as well as also improvements to the margin from your sourcing measures to sort of centralize and negotiate on your sourcing.



How should we view where you are in this journey? I appreciate that it might be always an ongoing work, of course. But sort of in terms of the merits or the benefits that you have extracted from these measures in recent year or years, how much more of a potential would you like to sort of highlight that you see here? Or have you taken most of the sort of low-hanging fruits here?

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

So I think the progress that we're currently seeing on the things that we can influence ourselves are going in the right direction. And also, as Pernilla outlined during the bridge, obviously, those are offsetting some of the things that are harder to influence like transportation, et cetera. So of course, the work continues. And then, of course, we expect that with the size, with the growth and the scale on our end, of course, that should have an impact.



At the same time, obviously, we know that our business model also relies on having a broad assortment, relies on having a very flexible online business. So there is still more potential, but it's also about balancing the business and at the end of the day, delivering the operating margin by also driving efficiencies on logistics, e-com, et cetera.



So ongoing work, as you outlined, and then always big things that could impact us from the outside, but I do think the progress is positive in terms of the underlying work that we're doing. And then what that will translate into, we will obviously see in the coming quarters. But all in all, progress in the right direction on our end.

[Magnus Råman, analyst]

Right. Yes, that's helpful. Maybe a mini sort of sub but real question tied to that. You mentioned here your Husqvarna battery range initiative. Will that be also inventory across your store network tied to this initiative, or more an online offering? And then if it's sort of broad across the store network, will you sort of, because I guess it carries a lot of different items around such a range. Are you removing some other supplier here? Or is this just sort of a broadening overall?

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

Yes. So on Husqvarna specifically, it's a priority. The biggest focus is online, but we also roll it out across a few select big stores in Sweden and Norway. So it's not being rolled out across all the stores. We're starting like that to judge the potential, which is very much in line with what we're also doing on the assortment right now, starting online, having a broad range with endless shelves available online, and then sequencing it into the bigger stores and then with the potential of broader rollout. But it's starting with online and a few select stores and not a broad rollout. 



And then to the second question of removing, obviously, we are constantly making the assortment efficient. So some things are going, others coming in to ensure efficiency. But there are no major big delistings coming as a result of the Husqvarna launch.



Also, I just wanted to follow up on the Finnish salary levels, just to ensure that is outlined correctly. So looking at the next 3 years, it's in '25, the salary increase is 2.9%. And in '26, it's 2.5%. And in '27, it's 2.4%, just to ensure that gets correct.

[Operator]

There are no more questions at this time. So I hand the conference back to the speakers for any written questions and closing comments.

[Unknown Executive]

Yes. And we do have one written question from Andreas Lundberg, SEB. How should we view the 8% OpEx growth in the quarter? Anything specific behind that growth, something high due to strong sales?

[Pernilla Walfridsson, executive]

Maybe we could mention 2 things. One thing is that we have increased the accruals for salaries due to bonus performance pay connected to higher sales volume and profit. And that is, compared to many other companies, we have more people included in our bonus programs. So that is one thing. The other thing is that we have also a bit more marketing cost due to that we have seen potential in that area to drive sales a bit better.

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

And maybe to just elaborate on the marketing side, obviously, we are -- these are not structural things. The biggest part of our marketing spend is digital and it's performance-based. So when we see opportunities to get high ROI spend, we go for it. So it's not something that is automatically expected in quarters to come, but we always want to get high ROI traffic when the opportunity arises. And I think that's one of the factors in the quarter.

[Unknown Executive]

With that, no further questions from the webcast. So I'll hand back to Kristofer for final remarks.

[Kristofer Tonström, executive]

Okay. Thank you very much. Great questions. And we will all see each other when we report our fourth and final quarter. So thank you very much for calling in today, and see all of you again soon.