Baltic ferry operator Tallink Group had flat retail and F&B on-board sales in the second quarter (down –0.1%) which, together with Q1 sales, produced a first half fall of -1.1% to €236.9m ($316.2m). In the same period in 2013 sales were €239.5m.

 

The retail result – which includes mainland port shops (see charts below and click to enlarge) – contrasts with a small rise in passenger traffic in the first half of +0.5% to 4.27m passengers.

 

However, on the key route for duty free shopping – Finland to Sweden [mainly operated by Silja Line] – traffic was down by -2.3% to 1.3m passengers (34% of all Tallink’s traffic).

 

The biggest DF&TR ferry operator in the world saw its overall revenue fall in Q2 by -1.0% to €246.5m, with gross profit also sliding by -10.6% and Ebitda by -12.3%.

 

Commenting on the result, Tallink blames maintenance and upgrade works on the vessels Star, Galaxy and Baltic Princess which meant fewer trips due to the ships being out of operation in Q2 compared to the same period in the previous year.

 

ENCOURAGING RETAIL TREND

While retail overall was down, the recently upgraded cruise ferry Silja Serenade on the Helsinki-Stockholm route has seen some positive developments. Higher customer satisfaction and on-board spending levels have confirmed that the investment is reaping a return according to the company and Tallink management believe it will be a boon to the business in the longer run.

 

On the downside, Tallink notes that an unstable macro-economic situation in Europe continues to blight the group’s operations. “In the first six months of the financial year a noticeable drop in passenger numbers from the Russian market has been observed,” the company says. This passenger profile is important to on-board retail sales and, in particular, to the new luxury offer that is being added on the core Finland-Sweden route.