"Achieving this result under the conditions of comprehensive hygiene concepts in production on the one hand and extensive home office activities on the other was only possible because the employees worked very prudently, highly flexibly and with great commitment. As a result, we remained fully productive and able to deliver throughout the year," says Herma Managing Director Sven Schneller. As in the previous year, high depreciation resulting from the recent investments in two new production facilities once again put pressure on the result. "All in all, however, we are satisfied given the circumstances. The fact that we are pursuing a strategy of profitable, organic growth is paying off," says Schneller. As the economic consequences of the pandemic cannot yet be fully assessed worldwide and the effects of the Brexit deal are still unclear, the company is planning extremely cautiously for the current year. "We now need to focus all our efforts on confirming the good turnover of 2020 and achieving growth in the low single-digit range. Turnover and incoming orders in the first two months of the current financial year indicate that this is ambitious, but achievable." The number of employees rose slightly over the course of the year from 1,097 to 1,106. The export ratio rose to 62.8 percent (previous year: 61.0 percent).

Stable situation in the divisions

The Adhesive Materials division benefited greatly from the new coating plant in Filderstadt, which went into operation in spring 2020. This enabled Herma to distribute customer orders across two autonomous production sites and thus implement particularly comprehensive hygiene concepts. An increase from EUR 223.7 million to EUR 241.1 million represents an increase of 8 percent compared to the previous year. "The new plant also opens up excellent opportunities for us to expand even further in particularly lucrative product areas in the future," explained Dr. Guido Spachtholz. He took up his position as the successor to Dr. Thomas Baumgärtner as Managing Director of Herma at the beginning of 2021.

Developments in the Labels division, where sales fell slightly from EUR 84.5 million to EUR 82.6 million, were characterized by very different trends. Lockdowns in the retail sector and the shift of activities to the home office reduced sales of office labels throughout Europe. "On the other hand, business with school products was excellent, thanks in part to targeted online activities," explained Schneller. Production stoppages in sectors that were already sensitive to the economic situation, such as the automotive and chemical industries, reduced demand for industrial labels.

In contrast, Herma was able to further expand its role as a leading supplier of logistics labels for shippers and score points with pharmaceutical and healthcare solutions. Thanks to its proven pharmaceutical expertise, the Labeling Machines division was also able to positively decouple itself from the general downward trend in the German mechanical engineering sector and grow by two percent: Turnover rose from 52.2 million to 53.3 million euros. "Thanks to our modular design, we were able to deliver at short notice," explained the Herma Managing Director. "This was an important advantage when the production of disinfectants was rapidly ramped up in many places and capacities for labeling vaccines were already being expanded."

Schneller was also pleased that, despite the difficult economic environment, the company had succeeded in setting the course for climate neutrality. "In 2021, we will produce adhesive materials, labels and labeling machines without leaving a_{carbon footprint}. It is a major concern of Herma's owners that we continue to act consistently on the issue of climate protection. Vaccination will hopefully end the pandemic soon - when it comes to climate protection, on the other hand, it is important that we all constantly question and adapt our behavior."