Tous returns to profit and stops operating in Russia

Tous leaves behind the losses of 2020 caused by the pandemic.The family jewelry group has closed the 2021 fiscal year with a net result of 22.3 million euros, compared to the losses of 10.8 million recorded in the previous year. TheEBITDA has risen to 80.7 million, a figure that, according to the company, allows it to practically reach pre-COVID levels, a year ahead of schedule. The rapid recovery of the international jewelry market has been key to the good evolution of the result, a fact that has boosted the company's sales by 37%, which havescaled to 384 million euros, more than one hundred million euros more than in 2020, when its stores were closed a third of the year. "2021 has been a truly satisfactory year in which we have been able to invest in important levers for our future," says Tous CEO, Carlos Soler-Duffo, who describes the return to profitability as "very robust." Among these levers that Soler-Duffo refers to, the commitment to omnichannel sales and theddefinitive takeoff of the brand's online store, which already generates 20% of the turnover.According to the company, in 2021 the digital business has grown at a rate of 30%, consolidating a trend already started in 2020 (+72%) that has allowed more than doubling online sales compared to 2019. The reorganization of the logistics chain, the renovation of the central headquarters in Manresa (Barcelona), and the expansion of the team with the incorporation of new talent are other projects undertaken by Tous in the last year. The company must now face the crisis caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, a situation that has led it to decide to leave the Russian market, just as other major international brands have done. "We plan to definitively exit the direct business in Russia in 2022, due to geopolitical uncertainty," says Tous, after pointing out that in March they already suspended all their activity in the country, closed the online store, and stopped sending new products to their stores. "We are moving forward to make this decision permanent," the group states. Specifically,in Russia Tous operates through a network of 55 boutiques, of which 32 are owned and 23 operated by franchisees. The plan to withdraw from the Russian market involves the transfer of all company-owned establishments to local franchisees, who will be able to continue using the brand and marketing the stock they have available. "Through this formula, compliance with all commitments derived from contracts in the country would be guaranteed, both with employees and with different service providers," adds the chain. On the contrary, Tous reaffirms its voccasion of permanence in Ukraine, where it has been able to reopen six of the nine existing stores, in addition to resuming online activity. The brand has been operating in Ukraine since 2017 through a franchisee whom it has tried to help as much as possible through its subsidiary in Poland. "We maintain full commitment and permanent contact with franchisees and local teams in Ukraine, attending to their needs and accompanying them in the country's reactivation," Tous highlights. The chain chaired by Alba Tous, which has just celebrated its 200th anniversary,sells its jewelry in 46 countries through a network of 700 storesand employs more than 4,000 people. The Tous family controls 75% of the group's capital, and the remaining 25% has belonged to the Swiss fund Partners Group since 2015.

Positioned in the affordable luxury segment, the Catalan brand has recently concentrated all its logistics in a warehouse located in Manresa that until now was dedicated solely to its accessories line. Thus, the dispatch of jewelry, which was carried out from its headquarters, has been moved to the other building to uniformly manage all stock and gain efficiency. It has also reformed its corporate headquarters to adapt the workspaces to new trends. All these changes are part of the so-called Tous Next strategy, a roadmap to ensure the group's growth in the coming years and which focuses on issues such as improving customer service, digitalization, omnichannel stores, sustainability, and the permanent review of processes to gain efficiency and agility.

Tous, which has made its bear-shaped jewelry an icon, associates its brand withcelebrities like Eugenia Martínez de Irujo or Tamara Falcó and this summer it has opted to reach new audiences with an important bet: it has been present for the first time at the Primavera Sound (Barcelona) and Mad Cool Festival (Madrid) music festivals, where it has sponsored one of the stages, in addition to having a livelystandwith DJ sessions in which he presentedMade of Sound, a collection of jewelry and accessories starring a band of seven iconic bears, reinterpreted with anime aesthetics. In recent months, Tous has announced several appointments forreinforce internal talentand, especially, the areas of design, marketing and communication. Thus, she appointed Anna Sió, a professional with 20 years of experience in companies such as Nike, Reebok or CH Carolina Herrera, as the new brand experience director. Other appointments, all women, are those of Cristina Zazo ---from Artistocrazy---, asDesign Manager; Clara Puig ---a professional accessories expert seasoned at Inditex and Bimba y Lola--- asAccessories Design Manager; Aida Tazón ---former Llyc consultant---, new director of corporate communication with direct reporting to Soler Duffo; and Alba Chaves, as director of internal communication. In addition, Teresa Copano, who has been responsible for corporate communication for the last eight years, has been promoted and will be part of the management committee as director of institutional relations (Public Affairs & Institutional Relations Director), reporting to Rosa Tous, vice president of the group.

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