The Wall Group, international specialist for street furniture and outdoor advertising, published the consolidated figures for the 2008 business year today. Daniel Wall, Chairman of the Wall AG Board, is able to look back on a successful year, in which the conclusion of long-term contracts at home and abroad strengthened the position of the company, despite the first tangible impact of the financial and economic crisis. In autumn 2008, Wall was able to win the tender of the city Münster for street furniture with a 15-year contract life. Existing contracts with the ECE Group and with Potsdam, the capital city of the Federal State of Brandenburg, were extended. In Turkey, too, the Group was able to extend its market position by winning a tender of the city Konya, thus moving up to become the No 2 on the Turkish outdoor advertising market.

The balance sum of the Group increased in 2008, mainly due to further investments in street furniture, reaching € 214.1M, following € 197.8M in the previous year. A sum of altogether € 8M was invested into modernisation and the construction of new advertising facilities, including € 4.1M that went to Berlin. In the underground stations of the German capital, all advertising display cases of the City Light Poster format were replaced by poster display cases of the Intelligent Series design line and fitted with changing technology in part. Thus, Wall is marketing about 1,000 CLP advertising surfaces in the main underground stations. Furthermore, 200 traditional Litfass pillars where fitted with a roof illumination that yields an energy saving of some 85 % as compared to the previous lighting and still illuminates the pillar in darkness from head to toe evenly.

The breaking financial and economic crisis led to a more hesitant booking behaviour among the advertising clients. The Group turnover in 2008 was reduced slightly as compared to the previous year by € 3.3M (2.8%) to € 114.7M.

The EBITDA reached € 29.5M following € 33.0M in the previous year. The EBITDA margin of the Group was reduced insignificantly to 25.7% (previous year 27.9%). At the Group level, an operative cash flow of € 18.7M was achieved. The Wall Group has an equity ratio of 34.5%, which is a continuing high share of own capital.

1st half of 2009 and outlook

In the 1st half of 2009, the Wall Group was not able to avoid the general market trend. The net turnover result of the 1st half of 2009 dropped in comparison to the same period of last year by € 6.5M to € 46.7M, this corresponds with a decline of 10.8 %. Within the peer-group of outdoor advertisers, the Wall Group emerges best comparatively, which is due to an excellent sales force geared towards the current market requirements.

At the turn of the year 2008/2009, Wall AG restructured its sales organisation in order to prepare for any possible impact of the economic downturn. The Board was reduced to three members; and the Chairman of the Board, Daniel Wall, took over the management of the Board divisions Sales, Marketing and Strategic Corporate Development. The company has also reorganised its foreign business and decided to exit the American market und to concentrate more than before on Turkey and Eastern Europe.

By setting up a new subsidiary, Wall mobiliare GmbH, that sells street furniture to towns and municipalities, project developers, landscapers etc. as well as by taking out a share in nextbike GmbH, a bicycle rental system, Wall AG is tapping into new market segments.

As outdoor advertising in Germany is not as strongly hit by the financial and economic crisis as the other advertising media, Wall AG expects a turnover drop in the amount of some 10% for 2009. A more or less stable turnover is predicted for the 100% subsidiary of Wall AG, DIE DRAUSSENWERBER GmbH, in charge of the local Berlin market. The company will invest € 10.4M in the current business year.

Two trends are going to have a decisively favourable impact on the development of outdoor advertising in the medium term, as compared to other advertising media: the growing mobility of the population, which makes outdoor advertising ever more interesting with its strength of reach, as well as innovations, on which Wall AG is working in the areas of digitization of advertisement and provision of information in public spaces. This is where the company sees chances for a further improvement of the market position in Germany as well as abroad.

Key-Facts for the Wall-Group:

• International street furniture and outdoor advertising company in seven countries and more than 50 metropolises and big cities, i.a. in Berlin, Boston, Budapest, Düsseldorf, Istanbul and Sofia



• Innovative street furniture with top quality design,
  28 different design lines



• Tailor-made solutions
  created by our own research and development centre



• Premium quality level through own production, maintenance and cleaning service



• Intelligent outdoor advertising on 62,000 highly attractive poster locations, including around 3,500 transport vehicles, such as trams, buses, underground trains and trucks



• High marketing competence through national and international sales teams in 10 sales offices



• National marketing portfolio in Germany: 27 major cities, AirportNet, ShoppingNet, Leipzig Central Station, Berlinale film festival, bluespot, RollAd on highways and transport media in Berlin incl. all underground stations



• Medium-sized company run by the family as majority owner, employees: 723