Clas Ohlson: Strong Sales and a Quiet End to Currency Hedging
A Summer of Strength
Clas Ohlson’s fiscal first quarter ended July delivered net sales up 16% year on year, with an operating margin of 12% and earnings per share of SEK 4.75 versus SEK 3.27 a year earlier. The quarter was marked by a broad-based organic revenue increase of 11% across its home markets of Sweden, Norway and Finland, and notably strong online growth of 18% organically, where online now represents 22% of total sales. “We continue to grow, we grow profitably, and we also continue to create value.” — Kristofer Tonström, CEO · 2026-09-03 That growth was underpinned by a series of store network additions — nine net new stores, bringing the total to 250 — and a deliberate expansion into adjacent product niches, which management frames as big bets.
The company also took the opportunity to reintroduce its multi-year financial framework, targeting 5% organic growth, 12% operating margin and 30% return on capital employed. CFO Pernilla Walfridsson noted that the gross margin expanded by 1.8 percentage points to 47.5% on the back of a weak U.S. dollar, a stronger Norwegian krone, and favorable purchasing conditions.
A Strategic Departure: Exit from Currency Hedging
Perhaps the most notable change in the quarter was the decision to discontinue all currency hedging. Historically, Clas Ohlson used forward contracts to smooth the impact of currency volatility, but management has now concluded that hedging merely shifts the timing of exposures rather than eliminating them. The CEO added, “Unless it really creates value, we don’t want to continue doing it.” — Kristofer Tonström, CEO · 2026-09-03 This pivot reflects a larger confidence in its pricing discipline, a rapidly growing e-commerce channel that reduces its exposure to local currency sales, and a strong balance sheet that can absorb short-term swings. The last hedging contract matures in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2026/27.
The immediate financial effect from maturing contracts is visible in the year-on-year comparison — a ~SEK 50 million negative drag from NOK hedges — and the company expects some residual effect into the second quarter. But this is a conscious trade-off: Clas Ohlson now embraces the natural volatility that comes with operating across Scandinavian currencies.
Assortment as the Growth Engine
The company is not just selling more; it is repositioning its assortment around tailored consumer missions and a much thinner version of the classic store catalogue. One of the clearest examples was the robot lawn mower category, which went from five to twelve brands in a single season. “That combination really gives customers the opportunity to find the right product according to their need and wallet.” — Kristofer Tonström, CEO · 2026-09-03 The same logic is being deployed in online-only SKUs that cannot be efficiently warehoused across the entire store estate. CEO Kristofer Tonström highlighted that the online growth is being driven by higher traffic, larger basket sizes, and improved conversion, rather than discounting.
That push into broader digital shelf space is reinforced by a ramped-up performance marketing spend, which is being measured strictly on return on ad spend and only scaled when it delivers profitable traffic. “We are increasing absolute amounts when it comes to spending... but as long as there is profitable traffic to be had, we will continue that.” — Kristofer Tonström, CEO · 2026-09-03 In an environment where certain Asian online discounters are facing import tariffs, management said they have not seen any direct impact on demand for Clas Ohlson, but they have noticed a slight pickup in online interest.
A broader macro context supports the story: the company’s home markets are seeing historically strong consumer spending this summer, even as geopolitical noise around trade policy persists. The decision to stop hedging might sound like a back-office detail, but it is arguably a sign of a company that is confident in its ability to generate consistently high returns on capital.
Looking Ahead
Clas Ohlson enters the autumn season with a healthy inventory position and an investment in its Insjön automation facility that will come on stream by fall 2027, with depreciation expected to begin at that point. The company has guided to a continued balancing act between growth, margin, and capital efficiency, and reiterated that the financial targets are not a ceiling but an endpoint of sustainable performance.
Management remains nimble in its approach to product selection, new store openings, and its digital ecosystem. For investors, the shift away from hedging removes a layer of accounting complexity, but leaves the company more directly exposed to currency swings. That might add near-term noise, but it is a signal that Clas Ohlson believes the underlying operating model is strong enough to absorb it.
It is more that hedging, it more shifts the timing of the impact. It is not removing the underlying exposure.