Autogrill revenues expected to reach €6.6bn in 2010

Nicole Mezzasalma

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The company expects synergies of €45m ($71.7m) per year to be delivered from 2010 following its acquisition of Aldeasa and World Duty Free

Italian group Autogrill has forecast consolidated revenues of €5.8bn ($9.2bn) at the end of 2008 and €6.6bn ($10.5bn) in 2010, with an average rise of 6.9% to 2010. The company’s 20082–010 business plan, which will be presented today, takes into account the effects of its acquisition of Aldeasa and World Duty Free (WDF), concluded in April and May 2008 respectively.

Autogrill has also revealed provisional revenue figures for the first half of 2008. While revenues by UK retailer Alpha Group remained “in line with the same period in 2007”, Aldeasa’s revenues were up by 4% and WDF registered an increase of 9% in local currency. Autogrill’s consolidated revenues for the period are expected to grow by about 25%.

The company said that the first phase of the restructuring process will encompass all group businesses including retail and food and beverage, and should be completed in the third quarter of 2008. Autogrill aims to achieve synergies yielding over €20m ($31.9m) a year from 2009 “through the rationalisation of the cost structure, including labour costs”. The second phase of the company’s reorganisation will focus on integrating the retail operations through the optimisation of its buying and supply chain “by leveraging on volumes”, which Autogrill expects will reduce costs by more than €25m ($39.8m) from 2010. Overall, the group hopes to produce synergies worth €45m ($71.7m) from 2010.

Autogrill CEO Gianmario Tondato Da Ruos said: “Our short-term objective is to reduce the net financial indebtedness without compromising development and investments, an objective we will achieve thanks to the group’s strong capacity to generate cash flow. The main economic indicators for the period 2008–2010 show revenue growth and a significant increase in EBITDA, a clear demonstration that our priority is operational efficiency.”

More information will be available on DFNIonline after the company’s presentation.