Continued Growth with Increased Margins and a Stable Booking Situation Ahead of the Coming Winter Season

It is with great pleasure that we present yet another action-packed year for SkiStar. Our work delivering memorable mountain experiences has continued, and we can sum up the year as having more satisfied guests, as well as a record number of both skier and activity days. I would like to express a big thank you to all our employees for all the hard work they have put in during the year.

Our growth has continued, with new revenue streams and visits by more international guests, and an increased operating profit. We have thereby strengthened our position as Scandinavia’s leading player in mountain tourism all year round.

Fourth Quarter

We continue our long-term work on building up a year-round business. Growth has been somewhat slower than expected, as the way the market operates differs compared with the winter season. At the same time, it is pleasing that we have increased the number of guests at our destinations, thereby increasing sales.

The acquisition of Trysilguidene at the beginning of the financial year has made a wider range of activities available for our guests during the quarter. We are seeing that more guests than ever have chosen to buy our annual SkiStar All Year passes, which have been used extensively during the summer. Sales in our sports goods stores continued to increase during the quarter, not only in our physical units, with the increased number of visitors at our destinations, but also online.

Despite a cautious property market, we completed several successful deals within our property exploitation operations by the end of the year, which was according to plan. Net sales for the fourth quarter amounted to SEK 339 million. Adjusted for non-recurring items, net sales increased by SEK 10 million, corresponding to 3 percent. At the same time, our operating profit/loss fell to SEK -279 million (-239). An adjustment to the accounting policies for our holding in the joint venture Skiab Invest had an effect of SEK -19 million on earnings for the quarter.

Full Year

We started the financial year with a capital market day at which we presented our updated mid-term financial targets and clarified our strategy to achieve these. It is, therefore, especially pleasing to be able to report strong organic growth of ten percent, which has been driven in particular by keen interest in mountain holidays among both Scandinavian and international guests. Together with improved margins, this marks an important first step towards achieving our set targets.

Net sales increased by SEK 398 million to SEK 4,679 million (4,281), with all revenue streams growing during the year. Operating profit increased by SEK 124 million to SEK 740 million (616), corresponding to 20 percent. The operating margin improved to 16 percent (14) during the financial year. The changed accounting policies regarding Skiab Invest had an effect of SEK -19 million on earnings.

Cash flow from operating activities also increased and amounted to SEK 1,084 million (669) during the financial year, an increase of SEK 415 million. The improvement was chiefly due to the stronger profit for the period and more efficient management of working capital during the year.

The increase in net sales and operating profit confirms that our strategic investments in developing and future-proofing our destinations in both Sweden and Norway are bearing fruit. During the year, we continued to invest in improved guest experiences with, for example, new lifts in Hemsedal, Sälen, and Åre, as well as in sustainability and digitalization. This involved fully electrifying the operations at SkiStar Hammarbybacken in Stockholm and introducing AI-based queue time management of our lifts via the SkiStar app. These efforts are a part of our work to meet the guests’ high expectations of quality and service, while also streamlining our operations.

Our increased number of guests during the winter season is also reflected in the record number of skier days, which grew by 7 percent, surpassing 6.1 million skier days.

Booking Situation Ahead of the Winter

Ahead of the 2024/25 winter season, we have a stable booking situation, measured as the number of overnight stays booked through SkiStar’s mediated accommodation, of +/-0 percent compared with the previous year. This is therefore SkiStar’s second-best booking situation for this time of the year.

We started sales before the year’s winter season began with record early promotions, mainly in Denmark, which resulted in many early bookings. After that, the weak economic situation and the summer weather affected the booking pattern during the quarter, with a later intake of bookings, mainly in the Swedish market. The latest interest rate reductions and the government’s stimulus package have had a positive effect, as they have made it possible for households to prioritize their mountain holidays.

As part of our strong commitment to sustainability, we continue to develop this area and have taken the initiative to bring together the entire international industry and lead discussions on how we can jointly drive sustainability initiatives in our sector.

Our ambition is to continue to develop SkiStar into the leading player in mountain tourism and holiday experiences in Scandinavia. I look forward with great confidence to the upcoming winter season and the opportunities it will bring. Together with our committed employees, we will continue to create memorable mountain experiences for our guests.

Stefan Sjöstrand, CEO

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