(AOF) – In order to adapt to the strong international growth of VusionGroup in recent years and to recent developments in the group’s capital structure, the board of directors will propose at the next general meeting of shareholders on June 19 the designation two new independent directors within the meaning of the Afep-Medef Code, bringing the total number of directors to 10, including 6 independent directors.
Among these new directors would be a representative of Bpifrance, on behalf of the LAC1 investment fund which now holds 8.21% of the capital of VusionGroup.
The board of directors has also appointed Peter Brabeck-Letmathe vice-chairman of the board and lead director of VusionGroup, as well as chairman of the new “Strategy and CSR committee of the board, made up exclusively of independent directors.
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Key points
– World number 1 in digital solutions – digital labels and IoT solutions – for physical commerce, created in 1992;
– Turnover of €621 million distributed between Europe & Africa-Middle East for 53%, including France for 10%, and the rest of the world;
– Positioning in 4 major markets: distribution for 37%, e-commerce for 25%, consumer products for 18% then technology (6%);
– Business model based on partnership with merchants in the use of digital technologies
– Capital comprising “involved” shareholders: managers and employees for 12%, Hong Kong-based BOE Smart Retail for 32%, E Ink (global patents for e-paper technology) for 5.5%, Qualcomm (strategic partnership in IoT connectivity) for 2%, Thierry Gadou being chairman and CEO of the 8-member board of directors;
– Financial situation under control, with €193 million in equity versus €74 million in debt), giving a leverage effect of 1.9.
Challenges
– “Vision-27” strategy:
– €2.2 billion in revenue, including: 40% in the United States, 45% in IOT and 30% in value-added solutions or VAS excluding electronic labels,
– 22% operating margin;
– Proactive innovation strategy:
– 5% dedicated to the R&D department (35% of staff spread across 7 centers spread across Europe, Asia and the United States and portfolio of 504 active patents in 16 countries,
– constant enrichment of the Vusion platform to serve businesses;
– 3 focuses: generation of digital shelf system, enrichment of the Cloud IoT platform and AI and computer vision solutions;
– Environmental strategy aiming for carbon neutrality in 2030 via:
– “Positive Retail Research” program for analyzing environmental issues in distribution,
– “Second Life” eco-design and repairability program,
– decarbonation of the group’s logistics solutions and organization,
– collaboration with customers to measure emissions avoided by digitalization;
– Strengthening the Data division:
– acquisitions of MarketHub and Memory, enriching the precision store management offering,
– integration of Belive.ia into Captana: AI and image analysis for operational efficiency of points of sale and supply chains, inventory optimization and reduction of waste;
– Growth of the order book at a rate equal to that of revenues.
Challenges
– Continuation of the partnership with Walmart: deployment of the VUSION platform throughout the United States and gradual entry, up to 10%, of the American distributor into the capital of SES-Imagotag;
– After the refutation, judged positively by investors, of the accusations of the Gotham City Reserach fund made at the beginning of the summer, waiting for details on governance and on links with BOE;
– Extension of the agreement with Ikea, limited to 6 European countries;
– After a 33% increase in revenue at the end of June, 2023 targets of a turnover of €800 million and a “substantial improvement in profitability”;
– No dividend distribution, priority being given to financing growth.
Sector sheet – Electronics
Large TVs booming
If specialists expected less appetite for large televisions after the health crisis, this is clearly not the case. The IFA highlighted the development of this equipment, with screens that can reach up to 120 inches. This market segment should see its activity driven by next summer’s Olympic Games. Leader for seventeen years in the television market, Samsung offers the most complete technological range. Large televisions are rather standard products for the Korean giant. As for the Chinese TCL, which took second place in the world market from LG, it is banking on the accessibility of its products, with prices significantly lower than those charged by Samsung. The group achieved growth of nearly 68% between the first half of 2021 and 2022 in the segment over 65 inches. Over one year, the average size of screens marketed by TCL increased from 46.3 to 49.9 inches. Another Chinese player, Hisense, is also seeking to gain market share in this niche.