The LSG Group Continues to Grow
Neu-Isenburg, Germany – During the first nine months of 2018, the LSG Group continued to grow.
Between January and September, the company generated consolidated revenues of EUR 2.4 billion. Adjusted for currency effects, revenues increased by 4.4 percent year-on-year, despite the voluntary withdrawal from certain markets and the expiration of some customer contracts. This was due mostly to increased passenger numbers, which the LSG Group is able to fully serve with its two expert brands: LSG Sky Chefs (classic catering) and Retail inMotion (onboard-retail programs). Adjusted EBIT was EUR 99 million, up about 50 percent on the figure for the first nine months of 2017, primarily due to lower transformation costs. EBIT rose 40 percent to EUR 94 million.
“This positive development in our earnings situation is attributable in particular to the improvement in the performance of our business in North America, the worldwide expansion of our onboard-retail activities and lower depreciation on receivables,” said Dr. Kristin Neumann, Chief Financial Officer. “Against the backdrop of growing demand for in-flight services and the convenience-retail business, we are now concentrating on the company-wide introduction of process orientation and the transformation of our business model.”
During these first nine months, LSG Sky Chefs extended substantial contracts with United Airlines, American Airlines, LATAM, and Cathay Dragon. However, the catering services for Asiana and Alitalia expired at their respective hubs in Seoul and Rome. Meanwhile, Retail inMotion confirmed its position as a leading onboard- retail provider and technology expert by winning the onboard-retail business of Etihad Airways. Two new joint-venture operations were launched in Wenzhou, China, and Lagos, Nigeria; and the catering joint-venture in Luanda, Angola, was extended ahead of schedule. The customer service center in Brussels, Belgium, which received the QSAI Award for the best catering operation in Europe in the spring, also began supplying Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. This and the approval for the construction of two regional production facilities in the Czech Republic and Western Germany are important milestones in the ongoing transformation of the company’s operating model in Europe.
“As another important initiative, we are now focusing on digitizing the standards introduced as part of our move toward process orientation,” commented Erdmann Rauer, Chairman of the Executive Board. “This will sustainably increase speed and transparency and provide us with valuable insight into customer needs and internal improvement potential. We see digitalization as a key driver of our transformation in the short and medium term.”