FloraHolland made a profit of EUR 12 million in 2015. This was announced at the press conference that was held on 18 May 2016. ‘We had expected a profit of zero euros, so this is a nice surprise,’ said CEO Royal FloraHolland Mr Lucas Vos.
FloraHolland’s turnover in 2015 was 1.4% higher than the year before. Last year, the profit amounted to EUR 12 million, which, according to Lucas Vos is positive. In their previous budget, the auction had anticipated there would be no profit at all.
According to Mr Vos, there are various reasons for the positive result. Trade revenues turned out better than expected; in 2015, growers received 0.9 percent higher prices on average for their flowers and plants than the year before; and operational costs fell by EUR 7 million to EUR 377 million, due to lower staff costs (110 FTE fewer), lower depreciation costs because of fewer investments, and the sale of real estate.
Of this EUR 12 million, half will flow back to general reserves. The other EUR 6 million will return to the members as a liquidity contribution. ‘That is 6 million more than we had promised,’ Vos explained. He indicated that the company’s financial health has improved in general and that is what he sees happening around him. ‘Of course, I can’t speak for other companies, but we see fewer companies stopping, and when they do, a lack of succession is often the reason for this. In general, customers also had a profitable year.’
The auction director is looking forward to the year 2016. The turnover so far is 3% higher than last year, but Mr Vos does not want to make any predictions about the further course of 2016. ‘Much will depend on the Brexit because Britain is a significant market for the Netherlands with a share of 16.7%.’
