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significance of big e-commerce operators.
The coronavirus pandemic has also
intensified the financial difficulties of
many traditional wholesale customers in
the fashion sector, such as department
stores and multi-brand retailers, which
may have an impact on Marimekko’s
business and distribution channel choices.
Maintaining competitiveness in a rapidly
changing operating environment being
revolutionized by digitization demands
agility, efficiency, flexibility and the
constant re-evaluation of operations. The
company’s ability to design, develop and
commercialize new products that meet
consumers’ expectations while ensuring
effective, quickly reacting and sustainable
production, sourcing and logistics also
has an impact on the company’s sales and
profitability.
The company’s growth in the longer
term is based primarily on omnichannel
retail: on increasing e-commerce, on
partner-led retail in Asia, as well as on
enhancing the sales per square meter
of existing stores in the company’s main
market areas. The Asia-Pacific region is
Marimekko’s second-biggest market, and
it plays an important role in the company’s
growth and internationalization. Major
partnership choices, partnering contracts
and other collaboration agreements
involve considerable risks. With the
company’s internationalization and the
growing interest in its brand, risks related
to gray exports have increased, which
may have an impact on the company’s
sales and profitability. Store lease
agreements in Finland and abroad also
contain risks.
Intellectual property rights play a vital
role in the company’s success, and the
company’s ability to manage and protect
these rights may have an impact on the
value and reputation of the company.
Agreements with freelance designers and
fees paid to designers based on these
agreements are also an essential part of
the management of intellectual property
rights. As the company internationalizes,
the risks of infringements of its intellectual
property rights may increase.
Prominent among the company's
operational risks are those related
to internationalization, digitization,
sustainability as well as the supply and
logistics chain. As Marimekko is a small
company, risks related to key personnel
can also be significant. The coronavirus
pandemic increases operational risks
related especially to taking care of the
health and safety of customers and
employees, production, supply and
logistics chain reliability and efficiency,
inventory and product flow management
as well as cybersecurity and information
system reliability as the importance of
e-commerce is further emphasized.
Early commitment to product orders
from subcontractors, which is typical of
the industry, weakens the company’s
possibilities to respond to rapid changes
in demand especially in exceptional
situations. For example, a rapid increase
in demand can pose challenges in the
availability of products.
In normal circumstances, too, there are
risks associated with information system
reliability, dependability and compatibility.
With digitization, various risks related to
cybersecurity and personal data protection
have also increased. DoS attacks,
malfunctions in data communications or,
for example, in the company's own online
store, may disrupt business or result in lost
sales. Data leakage can lead to claims for
damages and reputation risks.
Operational risks related to
Marimekko’s supply chain are associated
especially with procurement and logistics
processes and their flexibility and
efficiency as well as price fluctuations
for raw materials and procurements.
As product distribution is expanded
and operations are diversified, risks
associated with inventory management
also grow. Substantial nonrecurring
promotions can also increase these risks.
Enhancing sustainability is increasingly
important for competitiveness in the
industry, which can have an impact on
the company’s sales and profitability. The
company primarily uses subcontractors
to manufacture its products. Of the
sustainability elements of manufacturing,
especially social aspects related to the
supply chain (including human rights,
working conditions and remuneration)
and environmental aspects (for example
production methods as well as raw
materials and chemicals used) as well as
transparent communications on these
subjects are of growing significance to
customers. These sustainability elements
apply to Marimekko’s own production and
sourcing as well as licensed products.
Compliance with sustainable business
methods is important in maintaining
customers’ confidence; any failures or
errors in this area will involve reputation
risks. Any delays or disturbances in
supply, or fluctuations in the quality of
products, may have a harmful impact on
business. Business and reputation risks
are prevented by taking care of product
safety as well as through continuous
quality control and sustainability work.
Climate change is expected to
bring an increase in various extreme
phenomena such as floods, typhoons
and hurricanes. Marimekko has stores in
areas in which such extreme phenomena
may occur, and if they damage stores
or cause momentary changes in
consumers’ purchasing behavior, it may
result in lost sales as well as expenses.
Extreme phenomena may also affect
the availability of products if they cause
damage to the company’s suppliers’
factories. Furthermore, climate change
or extreme weather may cause droughts,
soil depletion or other changes in growth
conditions, which could impact the
availability and price of Marimekko’s most
used raw material, cotton.
Among the company’s financial risks,
those related to the structure of sales,
price trends for factors of production,
changes in cost structure, changes in
exchange rates (particularly the US dollar,
Swedish krona and Australian dollar),
taxation, and customers’ liquidity may
have an impact on the company’s financial
status. The coronavirus pandemic has
significantly increased risks related to
customers’ liquidity.
MARKET OUTLOOK AND GROWTH
TARGETS FOR 2021
The coronavirus pandemic has created
the worst crisis experienced by the global
REPORT OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS