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Year <strong>2007</strong><br />
Divisions The Group Financial statements Further information 33<br />
in outdoor activity-related product groups.<br />
Budget Sport’s customers are interested in<br />
outdoor activities and value low prices and<br />
ease of purchasing.<br />
There are 56 Intersport stores, 39 Kesport<br />
stores and two Budget Sport stores in Finland,<br />
of which 90 are owned by retailer entrepreneurs<br />
and seven by Intersport Finland.<br />
Market<br />
The sports trade market in Finland is growing<br />
at the rate of 3–4% per <strong>year</strong>. People’s interest<br />
in their own health and wellbeing has<br />
increased, which is reflected in the sales<br />
growth of special sports and fitness equipment,<br />
for example.<br />
The main competitors of the Intersport<br />
Finland chains include Sportia, Top Sport,<br />
Stadium, department stores and hypermarkets,<br />
and other speciality stores.<br />
Year <strong>2007</strong><br />
The net sales of Intersport Finland were €147<br />
million in <strong>2007</strong>, representing an increase of<br />
3.4%. The combined retail sales of the company’s<br />
store formats were €274.1 million, up by<br />
6.7%.<br />
In <strong>2007</strong>, an Intersport megastore was<br />
opened in the centre of Turku and the second<br />
Intersport was opened in Lappeenranta.<br />
The second outlet in the Budget Sport<br />
chain was opened in the Ideapark shopping<br />
centre in Lempäälä in April.<br />
Objectives and outlook<br />
Stable growth will continue in the sports market.<br />
Foreign rivals and increased price competition<br />
will tighten competition in the sector.<br />
The chains of Intersport Finland aim at<br />
growth exceeding the market average. This<br />
will be achieved by enhancing the staff’s sales<br />
and service competence and improving the<br />
store concepts.<br />
The next Budget Sport stores will be<br />
opened in Espoo and Raisio in spring 2008.<br />
Intersport Finland is also making preparations<br />
to open sports stores in the Baltic<br />
countries.<br />
Furniture and interior<br />
decoration trade<br />
Indoor Group<br />
Indoor Group is a furniture and interior decoration<br />
retailer which operates through the<br />
Asko and Sotka store chains in Finland and<br />
the Baltic countries. Asko and Sotka together<br />
have 85 stores in Finland, six in Latvia, five in<br />
Estonia and two in Sweden. In Finland, 51 of<br />
the stores are owned by Asko, while 34 operate<br />
as a franchise. Asko serves quality- and<br />
brand-conscious home decorators with up-todate<br />
and competitive product ranges that<br />
cover all interior decoration needs. Sotka<br />
offers the sector’s most competitive furniture,<br />
in terms of its price-quality ratio, to customers<br />
who value low prices.<br />
Market<br />
There continued to be strong interest in<br />
home furnishing in <strong>2007</strong>. Consumers spent<br />
an increasing amount of money on home<br />
comfort, focusing on both entertainment electronics<br />
and interior decoration. The sizable<br />
investments of many chains in their store networks<br />
further intensified competition. The<br />
Finnish furniture market grew to nearly €1.3<br />
billion. Despite the keener competition, the<br />
Asko and Sotka chains maintained their position<br />
as Finnish market leader and increased<br />
their position in the Baltic countries.<br />
Year <strong>2007</strong><br />
Indoor Group’s net sales totalled €196.5 million<br />
in <strong>2007</strong>. The retail sales of the Asko and<br />
Sotka chains in Finland were €211.5 million.<br />
Indoor Group expanded its store network vigorously<br />
in <strong>2007</strong>. New Asko and Sotka stores<br />
were opened in Kemi, Joensuu, Kajaani,<br />
Hyvinkää, Lahti and Vantaa. A new Sotka<br />
store was opened in Huittinen and a new Asko<br />
store in Rovaniemi. In Latvia, the third Asko<br />
and Sotka stores were opened in Riga.<br />
Indoor Group continued to focus on customer<br />
service in its chains by improving the<br />
reliability of its deliveries and the service<br />
skills of its staff.<br />
Objectives and outlook<br />
It is estimated that high interest in home furnishing<br />
and decoration will continue. Competition<br />
in the furniture sector will be intense<br />
and, consequently, it will be increasingly<br />
challenging to meet customer expectations.<br />
Indoor Group will continue to differentiate its