Norwegian furniture manufacturer Ekornes, owner of the Stressless brand, has reported a slight uptick in Q3 sales, while the UK and Ireland declines.
According to its latest trading update, third quarter 2025 operating revenues came in at NOK 858 million, up 1% from the third quarter 2024, mainly due to higher prices offsetting lower sales volume.
Revenues from Stressless®, representing 74% of Group revenues, ended at NOK 637 million during the quarter, up 2% from the corresponding period last year. Revenues from IMG were down 13% to NOK 152 million, with the discovery brand being more affected by slower consumer spending. Svane® revenues grew 21% to NOK 69 million from last year, primarily driven by product portfolio optimisation.
Gross operating earnings (EBITDA) of NOK 110 million (115), were slightly down due to increased investments in marketing including studio upgrades and digital communication. Earnings before tax for the third quarter 2025 ended at negative NOK 26 million, compared to a loss of NOK 4 million in the third quarter 2024.
Commenting on its market performance in Europe and the UK, Ekornes said: “Although having a soft development in the first half of 2025, the trend turned slightly in the quarter with positive order intake in Central Europe for Stressless® and IMG. Southern Europe was stable overall, while UK remained challenged by market volatility and slow consumer spending.
“Year-to-date, Ekornes has experienced sales of premium products have held up better in weaker markets, making IMG more impacted than the known Stressless® brand. With continued high living costs and increased uncertainty from trade tariffs, the outlook for Europe is highly uncertain.
“Against a weaker market backdrop, Ekornes is evaluating its distribution strategy and remains committed to ongoing strategic efforts to increase marketing investments in brand modernisation and increased digital presence. The company also sees risk that the imposed US trade tariffs may lead to increased furniture volumes coming from China and is monitoring the situation closely.”
UK and Ireland sales were down from NOK 80.1 million to NOK 60.6 million, while year-to-date revenues fell from NOK 239.8 million to NOK 224.8 million.
Tine Hammernes Leopold, CEO of Ekornes, commented: “Adding to high cost of living, changes to regulatory framework have materially impacted the furniture industry in recent months, increasing uncertainty and impacting retailer and consumer confidence.
“Addressing the challenges, we are evaluating short-term mitigating actions, primarily within operational adjustments and cost reductions. Longer term, we are considering larger supply chain adjustments, although this will take time to execute and requires more clarity on framework conditions.”
