CEWE with slightly higher earnings after three quarters

- Group EBIT 0.7 million euros better than in the previous year after nine months

- European bestseller: 75 millionth CEWE PHOTOBOOK sold

- Delivery capability in Christmas business: CEWE makes a "gift promise"

Oldenburg, 12 November 2021. For the first time in four years CEWE Stiftung & Co. KGaA (SDAX, ISIN: DE 0005403901) achieves an EBIT which, at 0.1 million euros, is already positive prior to the traditionally strong fourth quarter (Q1-3 2020: -0.6 million euros). The earnings situation, with turnover at 395.0 million euros 4.4% short of that of the previous year, has thus continued to improve (Q1-3 2020: 413.3 million euros). "In the past few months, many of our customers have been taking photos again - when travelling, engaging in activities or attending private functions - and they can now use these pictures to order CEWE photo products. This enables us to look positively towards the Christmas season that is so vital for us," says CEO Dr. Christian Friege. CEWE traditionally generates most of its annual net income during the fourth quarter. The conditions required for achieving this are given: "CEWE has provided so well with production materials that our customers can rely on their very personal CEWE photo product as a Christmas present with our "gift promise", Friege continues.

Lockdown catch-up effects determine the development in photofinishing
While demand for photo products was still stimulated by the coronavirus lockdown during the second quarter of last year, with the easing of coronavirus measures only beginning in the third quarter, this year the same period was impacted throughout by relaxations, with many people spending more time on undertakings that were not possible during lockdown, which meant that they ordered fewer photo products. Added to this, during the third quarter people mainly went on holiday trips - important for the travel photobooks that are so much in demand in Q3 - in their own country or in neighbouring countries: long-distance travelling as an occasion to order a particularly large CEWE PHOTOBOOK with many pages was more an absolute exception. This saw a slight decline in turnover in the business segment of photofinishing, by 3.7 % to 106.3 million euros in the third quarter of 2021 (Q3 2020: 110.3 million euros), with the EBIT at -2.1 million euros (Q3 2020: 0.2 million euros). CEWE is in an excellent position to master the upcoming Christmas season and is assuring its customers that photo products will all be delivered in time with its "gift promise": All the necessary production materials have been stocked up early and extensively. The regional supplier relationships with short transport routes established as part of the sustainability strategy are also a great advantage in the important year-end business.

Commercial online printing benefits from the revival of business life
The business segment of commercial online printing benefited from the ongoing normalisation of business life and the related recovery in demand for printed material for business and advertising in the third quarter. In Q3 2021, turnover rose by 8.0 % over that of the same period of the previous year, to 16.6 million euros (Q3 2020: 15.4 million euros). The EBIT also improved considerably as turnover increased and also as a result of the optimised cost structure, by 1.4 million euros to -0.2 million euros (Q3 2020: -1.6 million euros).

Retailing continues with its clear focus on photofinishing and online business
With the number of its stores significantly reduced by around 30%, CEWE retailing shows itself to be better placed, continuing with its strategic focus on photofinishing and online business. The decline in sales was distinctly lower than the reduced number of shops, at 15.8% to 7.5 million euros (Q3 2020: 9.0 million euros), so retailing brought the third quarter to a successful conclusion, with EBIT, at -0.02 million euros, even slightly exceeding that of the same period of the previous year (Q3 2020: -0.05 million euros). Retailing, like the business segment of photofinishing, traditionally generates its annual net income in the fourth quarter of any calendar year.

Position even sounder: equity ratio and ROCE continue to grow
The equity ratio has increased significantly again and is now, at the end of the third quarter, at an extremely sound 57.3% (30.09.2020: 53.2 %). The ROCE was also clearly improved as at 30 September 2021, to 19.8% compared to 15.4% last year.

75 millionth CEWE PHOTOBOOK from England
CEWE reached a special milestone last quarter: a customer in England ordered the 75 millionth CEWE PHOTOBOOK from CEWE's retail partner Boots. This is confirmation of the outstanding position of the CEWE PHOTOBOOK, launched in 2005 and now a bestseller and Europe's favourite photo book.

CEWE Photoworld app wins EISA Award
The professional world has acknowledged the market leader position held by CEWE innovations. This year's EISA Awards, in general one of the greatest honours awarded for technical products, saw the CEWE Photoworld app being distinguished as the best product with the "EISA 2021-2022 Photo Service Award". On bestowing the award, the European Imaging and Sound Association (EISA) emphasised how easy it was to produce beautiful CEWE PHOTOBOOKS and other CEWE photo products from personal photos using a smart phone and the CEWE Photoworld app.
An overview of 2021 Q1-3 and Q3 results

Rounding differences may occur. Deviations have all been calculated at the exact values.

Notes to the "Earnings by Business Segment" chart

(1) Photofinishing: Production and sale of photo products such as the CEWE PHOTO BOOK, calendars, greeting cards, wall art and individual (analogue and digital) photos as well as other photo products
(2) Retailing: Trading in photo hardware, such as cameras and lenses, in Norway, Sweden, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia
(3) Commercial online printing: Production and sale of commercial print products in the online printing portals of SAXOPRINT, viaprinto and LASERLINE


Should you have any queries, please contact:
CEWE Stiftung & Co. KGaA, Axel Weber (Investor Relations)
Tel.: 0441 / 404 - 2288, Fax: 0441 / 404 - 421, Email: IR@cewe.de

Internet: cewe.de , deindesign.de , whitewall.com , cheerz.com ,
cewe-print.de , viaprinto.de , saxoprint.de, laser-line.de

The CEWE apps are all available in the app stores: CEWE FOTOWELT, CEWE POSTCARD and other photo apps, and the CEWE Investor Relations App for iPads(c) or android tablets, with annual reports and quarterly reports, presentations and sustainability reports.

Financial schedule
(insofar as already scheduled)

22.11.2021 German Equity Forum
06.01.2022 2022 Lyon ODDO BHF Forum
19.01.2022 2022 UniCredit Kepler Cheuvreux German Corporate Conference
31.03.2022 CEWE 2022 Annual Report and analysts' press conference
31.03.2022 Publication of the 2021 Annual Report
15.06.2022 2022 Annual General Meeting

About CEWE:
The CEWE Group is Europe's leading photo service and online printing supplier.

From its beginnings in 1912, CEWE has progressed to become the leading photo service company for all those wanting to make more of their photos. This is mainly due to the much-awarded CEWE PHOTOBOOK, with more than six million books being sold each year. Customers can purchase other personalised photo products under the brand names of CEWE, WhiteWall and Cheerz - and from many leading retailers in Europe. Concerning their personal photos, they are inspired to produce a variety of creative designs and they trust the company with more than 2.3 billion photos every year.

The CEWE Group has also set up a highly efficient production system for advertising prints and business prints for the online printing market, which is still a new market. Every year billions of high-quality printed products are delivered reliably to their purchasers through the SAXOPRINT, LASERLINE and viaprinto sales platforms.

The CEWE Group, through the founder family of Neumüller as an anchor shareholder, focuses on sustainable corporate management and has already received many awards for this effort: economically sustainable in the long term; cooperative and fair in dealings with customers, employees and suppliers; socially responsible and protective of the environment and resources. An example of this is the climate-neutral process used to produce all the CEWE brand-name products.

The CEWE Group has a staff of 3,600 employees and operates in 21 countries. CEWE is listed on the SDAX. More information is available at company.cewe.de.