Jewelry maker Pandora expects to return to sales growth in 2021 for the first time in three years despite many shops still being closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it said on Thursday.
Pandora, best known for its customizable silver charm bracelets, said it expects about a quarter of its more than 2,700 shops worldwide to be shut during the first half of the year.
The jeweler posted fourth-quarter sales and operating profit in line with expectations. Helped by improving online sales and customers spending more on gifts and discretionary goods instead of travel and services, it had a strong end to 2020.
"Despite significant disruptions, we managed to navigate the business to a very strong performance, leading to market share gains in many markets," Chief Executive Alexander Lacik said in a statement.
The company forecasts an EBIT margin this year above 21%, slightly higher than last year but lower than in 2019.
Pandora said sales in the fourth quarter fell 1% to 7.89 billion Danish crowns ($1.27 billion), compared with analyst expectations of 7.96 billion crowns.
Operating profit (EBIT) stood at 2.21 billion crowns, against the 2.23 billion crowns forecast by analysts.
