Zur Rose Group continues to grow strongly

Zur Rose Group AG / Key word(s): Quarter Results

21-Oct-2021 / 06:55 CET/CEST
Release of an ad hoc announcement pursuant to Art. 53 LR
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

Zur Rose Group continues to grow strongly

- Growth continues: revenue up 17.7 per cent in the first nine months of 2021

- France expands by extending product range to include OTC medications

- DocMorris healthcare platform takes next step in its development

- Zur Rose expects external revenue growth of over 15 per cent for the full year

In a challenging market environment the Zur Rose Group posted significant growth in the first nine months of 2021. External revenue^[1] increased by 17.7 per cent in local currency terms or 19.7 per cent in Group currency terms to CHF 1,490.8 million. Growth in the third quarter 2021 was 11.9 per cent year-on-year in local currency terms. The number of active customers rose by 400,000 to 12.1 million in the third quarter.^[2]

Significant revenue growth in all markets
The Zur Rose Group saw powerful growth in Germany in the first nine months, with external revenue up by 24.9 per cent in local currency terms. The increase is mainly due to the online business in non-prescription drugs and healthcare products, which more than made up for the slight decline in revenue from prescription drugs on a paper prescription. In the Swiss home market Zur Rose grew at a consistently stable 5.3 per cent, which is ahead of the market. The Europe segment reported a pleasing revenue growth with a plus of 20.2 per cent in local currency terms.

DocMorris.fr extends range to include OTC medications
DoctiPharma.fr, now DocMorris.fr, the second-largest online pharmaceutical platform in France and part of the largest marketplace in Europe, is extending its product range with a strategic partner in November 2021 to include OTC medications. This will provide customers in France with easy and safe access to a broad range of health products and pharmaceutical advice. The considerably increased customer traffic will also make the platform more attractive for pharmacy partners. As part of this expansion the DoctiPharma brand has been changed to DocMorris, the umbrella brand of the Zur Rose Group for the European healthcare ecosystem. The improved brand identity and services offered are being accompanied by a multimedia campaign. The intention is to extend the service offering at a later stage through a partnership in telemedicine.

DocMorris healthcare platform in Germany takes next step in its development
Thanks to the integration of the DocMorris Express marketplace with its network of partner pharmacies and their services, customers of the healthcare platform can now enjoy both mail order and the option of same day express delivery by a local partner pharmacy when ordering medications and healthcare products. This will make the platform even more closely focused on its customers. With its central portfolio of services and easy access through a single app, the DocMorris healthcare platform provides a holistic way for people to manage their health in one click - from diagnosis in an online doctor's consultation and having an e-prescription filled to pharmaceutical advice and checking for interactions, all the way to multiple options for delivery.

The app had a handy scan function for filling e-prescriptions right from the start of the gematik test phase on 1 July 2021. Customers expect functions tailored to their needs when mandatory e-prescriptions are launched nationwide on 1 January 2022. Having e-prescriptions filled has to be user-friendly, have no barriers and offer a free choice of the means of transmission. Scanning the e-prescription token allows patients to send the digital prescription information to their chosen pharmacy securely and rapidly. On 30 September the launch of e-prescriptions on 1 January 2022 was confirmed. The introductory phase in Berlin-Brandenburg as a focus region is being extended by two months by gematik and will be rolled out nationally in December.

Health app Well heralds the future of Swiss healthcare
The end of August 2021 saw the start of Well, the comprehensive new digital healthcare app for Switzerland. A test version of Well is already available and a full version will be ready in early 2022. Well will make a major contribution to simplifying digital access to healthcare services for patients and making healthcare processes more efficient. Zur Rose is a founding partner, along with insurers CSS, Visana and Medi 24, and has provided some of the technology.

Outlook
In view of the revenue performance in the first nine months and the weakness in OTC demand due to the pandemic, the Zur Rose Group is adjusting expected growth in external revenue for the current year to over 15 per cent.

The remaining targets that have been announced remain unchanged: Management assumes that in the medium term - over a time horizon of three to five years - online penetration of prescription medicines in Germany can reach a level of around 10 per cent as a result of the mandatory introduction of electronic prescriptions (eRx), with further potential beyond this period. The Zur Rose Group expects to exceed the sales threshold of CHF 4 billion towards the beginning of this medium-term time horizon as a result of organic growth. The Group also confirms the medium-term EBITDA margin target of around 8 per cent. Implementing the healthcare ecosystem will create further relevant potential for revenue and profit. The aim is for break-even at the EBITDA level 12 to 18 months after 2021.

External revenue consists of the consolidated revenue of the Zur Rose Group plus the mail-order revenue of pharmacies supplied by the Zur Rose Group, less the consolidated revenue for their supply.

Investors and analyst contact
Christoph Herrmann, Head of Investor Relations
Email: ir@zurrose.com, phone: +41 58 810 11 49

Media contact
Lisa Lüthi, Head of Group Communications
Email: media@zurrose.com, phone: +41 52 724 08 14

Agenda
20 January 2022 Sales 2021
24 March 2022 2021 Full-Year Results
20 April 2022 First Quarter Trading Update
28 April 2022 Annual General Meeting

Zur Rose Group
The Swiss Zur Rose Group is Europe's largest e-commerce pharmacy and one of the leading medical wholesalers in Switzerland. It also operates the leading marketplace in southern Europe for consumer health, beauty and personal care products commonly sold in pharmacies. The company is internationally present with strong brands, including Germany's best-known pharmacy brand, DocMorris, and employs more than 2,200 people at sites in Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and France. Now serving more than 12 million active customers in core European markets, Zur Rose generated revenue of CHF 1,752 million (including external revenue) in 2020.

With its business model, the Zur Rose Group offers high-quality, safe and cost-effective pharmaceutical care. It also excels in continuous development of digital healthcare services and as a platform technology provider. In addition, Zur Rose is actively driving forward its positioning as a comprehensive healthcare service provider, with focus on building up its European healthcare ecosystem networking qualified providers of products, services and digital solutions. Zur Rose's contribution will be to bring these offerings to customers and patients, pursuing its vision of creating a world where people can manage their own health in one click.

The shares of Zur Rose Group AG are listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (securities number 4261528, ISIN CH0042615283, ticker ROSE). For further information, please visit zurrosegroup.com.

^[1] External revenue consists of the consolidated revenue of the Zur Rose Group plus the mail-order revenue of pharmacies supplied by the Zur Rose Group, less the consolidated revenue for their supply.
^[2] Customers supplied by the Zur Rose Group, either directly or through its partners.