Major Shareholding Notification • Aug 13, 2013
Major Shareholding Notification
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PRESS RELEASE 13 August 2013
Investment AB Kinnevik (publ) ("Kinnevik") today announced that it has signed an agreement with Rocket Internet to transfer indirectly held Zalando shares into direct ownership. Following the transfer, Kinnevik now directly controls 37.5% of the company.
Zalando is the largest online player by net revenues in the fashion sector in Europe. The company started its operations in Germany in 2008 and today operates online shops also in the Netherlands, Belgium, France, the United Kingdom, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark, and Poland. Zalando has grown rapidly and reported net sales of EUR 1,159m in 2012 and EUR 372m in the first quarter of 2013.
CEO of Kinnevik, Mia Brunell Livfors, commented:
"Zalando is a core holding in Kinnevik's portfolio and by transferring the indirectly held shares into direct ownership we further strengthen the governance of Zalando and our ability to work actively with the company to execute its growth strategy and further strengthen its position as a leading European e-commerce company. "
Separately, Zalando announced today that Anders Holch Povlsen, owner of the fashion company BESTSELLER, joined the Zalando shareholder group. The company press release is attached.
The information is of such character, which Kinnevik shall disclose in accordance with the law on Trading with Financial Instruments (1991:980) and/or the Securities Market Act (2007:528). The information was distributed for disclosure at 9.00 a.m. on 13 August 2013.
| Mikael Larsson, Chief Financial Officer | +46 (0)70 762 00 70 |
|---|---|
| Torun Litzén, Director Investor Relations | +46 (0)70 762 00 83 |
Investment AB Kinnevik was founded in 1936 and thus embodies seventyfive years of entrepreneurship under the same group of principal owners. Kinnevik's objective is to increase shareholder value, primarily through net asset value growth. The company's holdings of growth companies are focused around the following business sectors; Telecom & Financial services, Online, Media and Industry and other investments. Kinnevik has a long history of investing in emerging markets which has resulted in a considerable exposure to consumer sectors in these markets. Kinnevik plays an active role on the Boards of its holdings.
The Kinnevik's class A and class B shares are admitted to trading on the NASDAQ OMX Stockholm's list for large cap companies, within the financial and real estate sector. The ticker codes are KINV A and KINV B.
Berlin, August 13, 2013. Anders Holch Povlsen, the well-known fashion entrepreneur and owner of BESTSELLER, joins the Zalando shareholder group, acquiring 10 percent of the shares in Zalando. BESTSELLER is one of Europe's leading fashion companies, with fashion brands such as JACK & JONES, VERO MODA, ONLY and SELECTED.
The parties agreed that Holch Povlsen will acquire shares from several early-stage shareholders, such as European Founders Found (EFF), Holtzbrinck and Tengelmann. All of the selling shareholders remain invested in Zalando.
"BESTSELLER and Zalando have been working together very successfully for several years. Anders Holch Povlsen has been following Zalando's development very closely and he knows our strengths," explains David Schneider, co-founder and managing director of Zalando. "To partner up with such an experienced fashion entrepreneur is amazing for us."
"This is an important step in the strategic development of our shareholder structure. Anders Holch Povlsen will be a strong and long-term-oriented shareholder and together we want to design the future of fashion e-commerce," expresses Rubin Ritter, managing director of Zalando.
Zalando was founded in 2008 and has shown strong growth ever since. In 2012, Zalando reached more than 1.15 billion EUR in revenue and break-even in its core region DACH (Germany, Austria and Switzerland). For Q1 2013, net revenues were 372 million EUR, a 74% increase compared to last year, while becoming one of the world's most visited fashion websites with already 15 million customers.
After this step, the shares of Zalando will be held as follows:
Investment AB Kinnevik: 37% European Founders Fund: 18% Anders Holch Povlsen: 10% DST Global: 9% Holtzbrinck Ventures: 8% Tengelmann Ventures: 6% Others: 12%
Zalando is Europe's leading online retailer for shoes and fashion. Its extensive selection for women, men and children ranges from popular high street brands to much sought-after designer labels from over 1,500 different international
brands. Exclusive accessories, beauty essentials and sportswear make up Zalando's wide range of products. A combination of unique services: free delivery and returns, a free service hotline and a 30 day returns policy make online shopping at Zalando an easy and secure shopping experience. With its own fashion blog, Facebook and Twitter accounts, Zalando provides customers with current fashion trends, product updates and news about the company. The company was founded in 2008 by Robert Gentz and David Schneider, and its headquarters are located in Berlin. Following on from its success in the German market, Zalando entered Austria in 2009 as first international market. The Netherlands and France followed in 2010. Italy, Great Britain and Switzerland opened its shops in 2011. In 2012 alone, Zalando has gone live in Sweden, Belgium, Spain, Denmark, Finland, Poland and Norway.
Boris Radke Corporate Communications Tel.: +49 (0)30 209681038 E-Mail: [email protected]
Zalando.de is brought to you by Zalando GmbH Sonnenburger Straße 73, 10437 Berlin, Germany
Registered at Amtsgericht Charlottenburg Berlin, HRB112394B VAT-ID: DE 260543043 Tax Number: 37/125/21423 Managing Directors: Robert Gentz, David Schneider, Rubin Ritter
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