Chief financial officer Hans Scholten talks through another record-breaking year for Kramp. “2022 was a year full of the unexpected, starting with the Ukraine war and the resulting inflation and supply chain disturbances. We have, however, shown resilience in dealing with those events and have improved our ability to adapt and enhanced our forecasting capability.”
Financial and operational results
“Inflation is driving up costs everywhere: personnel, distribution, energy, packaging and the cost of the products we sell. Last year our turnover hit €1.1bn, an increase of 7%. That’s 2.2% over forecast. This was, however, not due to a greater volume of sales, but due to price increases we had to make in response to the increase in our own purchase prices and operational costs.
“Our net turnover result was therefore lower than it was in 2021, by €1m. Our non-operational costs were also higher, with exchange losses where the euro weakened.
“Further costs included closing down Staplerkönig and selling Kramp Russia. Staplerkönig was a German startup that we bought around two years ago as a learning exercise in an adjacent market. After two years of partnership, Kramp and Staplerkönig reached the conclusion that the different products, cultures and market approaches prevented both parties from bringing their businesses closer together. It was with regret that we concluded that Staplerkönig could not continue its operations.
“Nor it is easy to sell a company in a country which is at war. We felt very strongly that Kramp Russia must remain in business – out of loyalty to our people there and because of its role in food production – and found a buyer late in the year. We will complete the sale in Q2 2023; the sale concluded in a substantial loss in our non-operational result.”
2021 vs 2022
“If we compare the total costs of 2021 and 2022, we see a €16.5m (12%) increase in 2022, with turnover only up 7%. All in all, though, considering the circumstances it was still a good year.
“Our result may be lower than 2021, but our financial position remains very strong, with a healthy solvency position of almost 47%. Our stock level guarantees a high availability for customers.”
Lessons learned to take into 2023
“We’ve learned some valuable lessons on inflation. We must be much more on top of the market, the effects of increased purchase prices for stock, and be adapt to the market. It’s an ongoing learning. We also need to pay closer attention to cost control.
“We are aiming for a 7% increase in turnover for 2023, half of which should be sales volume. We expect our bottom line to be 10% up, bringing us slightly above the excellent year we had in 2021. Q1 has been a positive start, in line with our ambitions, so we are on track.”
Increasing our shareholding to remain a family business
Being a family business is a strong element of the Kramp culture and that ethos is one of the reasons we have been such a successful company over the last 72 years. We believe that it is positive for Kramp and its stakeholders to remain family-owned for as long as possible.
Between 2000 and 2010, our CFO Hans Scholten, our CEO Eddie Perdok, and the investment company NPM Capital acquired all Kramp shares from our second generation of shareholders, Anjo Joldersma and Henk van Braak.
Since 2010, Hans Scholten and Eddie Perdok have owned 60% of shares, with 40% owned by NPM Capital. In demonstration of their faith in the long-term future of our company, they have reached an agreement with NPM to buy back 15% of the total shares, giving them a 75% shareholding.
Family companies think in generations and long-term partnerships. We are convinced this decision is good for our people, customers and suppliers, it gives long-term continuity and stability to the company, and both Hans Scholten and Eddie Perdok are incredibly proud to be able to invest in our shared future in this way.
