Manutan International S.A. - Introduction

Introduction

32 bis Boulevard de Picpus
Paris F-75583 Cedex 12
France
Telephone: ( + 33)1 53 33 40 00
Fax: ( + 33)1 53 33 40 38
Web site: http://www.manutan.com

Public Company
Incorporated: 1966
Employees: 1,109
Sales: EUR 338 million ($442 million) (2004)
Stock Exchanges: Euronext Paris
Ticker Symbol: MAN
NAIC: 454113 Mail-Order Houses

Manutan International S.A. is a specialist mail-order business providing industrial and office equipment and supplies to the business-to-business, collective, and public sectors. Based in France, Manutan has built up a pan-European network of 23 subsidiaries in 20 countries, as well as through 18 e-commerce Web sites. Manutan's more than 200 catalogs feature over 350,000 items and serve more than 600,000 customers throughout Europe. Manutan operates under its own name as well as a number of other well-known European names, including Overtoom (Netherlands and Belgium), Bott (France and Germany), Plus (Poland, Czech Republic), Key (United Kingdom), and Witre (Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Finland). In 2004, the company posted total revenues of EUR 338 million ($442 million). The group's Southern division (France, Spain, Portugal, and Italy, as well as Manutan Belgium) accounted for 50 percent of that total. The Central division (Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, Overtoom in Belgium, Switzerland, Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovenia, and Slovakia) added 35 percent to sales, while the Western division (United Kingdom and Ireland) produced 11 percent of group sales. Manutan's Northern division (Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Finland) remained its smallest, at just 4 percent of sales. Listed on the Euronext Paris Stock Exchange since 1985, Manutan remains controlled by the founding Guichard family at nearly 76 percent of shares. Founder André Guichard and son Jean-Pierre Guichard continue to lead the company.