• Cosentino’s strategy, resilience, and adaptability played a key role in safely managing the challenges of the past year. 
• The company’s business model also made it possible to meet the changing needs of its customers and partners around the world as a result of the pandemic.
• The company maintains its volume of business with a turnover that again exceeds $1 billion ($1.267 billion) and increases its Ebitda in double digits in percentage terms at a comparable exchange rate to 2019 to reach $244 million with the application of IFRS16 regulations.

Cosentino Group, a global leader in the production and distribution of innovative surfaces for architecture and design, has strengthened its business model in 2020 thanks to its commitment to sustainable innovation, human capital, its international presence, and the digital transformation of the organization. Thanks to these factors, the multinational company reached a turnover of $1.230 billion ($1.267 billion in 2019). On the other hand, the year-end EBITDA stood at $244 million, including changes in IFRS 16 regulations. Excluding these adjustments, the resulting EBITDA would be $201 million. In both cases a record figure in the history of the company. The Group’s Net Profit achieved last year was $74.5 million.

INVESTMENTS IN INNOVATION AND SUSTAINABILITY

Despite the global crisis caused by COVID-19, Cosentino has invested in product R&D and in industrial and environmental management, all of which are characterized by a high degree of sustainability and a long-term vision. In 2020, the company’s overall investment was close to $137 million. 

On the industrial side, Silestone® production capacity has increased by almost 30%, production plants have been automated and digitized, and new developments in R&D have led to important innovations like the pioneering of HybriQ+ technology. The production and environmental efficiency of the Dekton® plant has also been increased, resulting in its classification as a Carbon Neutral Product last year, and the brand’s biggest color launch to date.

Sustainability has been the focus of the company’s strategic investments in its commitment to a low-carbon economy, emissions reduction, and energy efficiency. In 2020, the company invested $25 million worldwide in environmental and safety assets, such as new extraction and emission cleaning systems, heat regeneration systems, new methods of storage and pneumatic transport of raw materials, and the expansion of water treatment systems for recycling.

FULL EMPLOYMENT AND DIGITALISATION

Cosentino has maintained its commitment to quality employment, consolidating its position as an employer brand. At the end of 2020, the company had a workforce of 4,740 employees, of which more than 2,600 were based in Spain. Furthermore, the company increased the number of indefinite contracts to 93%, and its workforce was made up of people from 76 different nationalities. 

This commitment to people as Cosentino’s core value was evident from the beginning of the pandemic. The main objective has been the implementation of all necessary measures to safeguard the health of workers and their families and to create and maintain safe working environments. Following the same line of action, and with the aim of minimizing on-site work, a program was implemented in March 2020 to promote home working through a system of rotating shifts for all those jobs that could be delivered this way. 

This would not have been possible without the digital transformation process that the company started years ago, which has been one of the key factors behind its ability to adapt and perform effectively over the past few months. In 2020, the number of professionals on Cosentino’s digital platform surpassed 50,000, while new digital services segmented by type of professional were developed. 

Thanks to these measures, more than 80% of orders are now processed through the digital platform. Furthermore, the digitalization of processes has continued, strengthening the architecture of the technological infrastructure and improving both internal communication tools and customer contact channels at a collaborative and commercial level.

INTERNATIONAL EXPANSION

The group continues its international expansion through investment in its own assets, such as the opening last year of new “Centers” in Ottawa and Winnipeg in Canada, and Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, and the expansion of its logistics network with a new Hub on the West Coast of the United States. Some facilities, such as the “Cosentino Centers” in Strasbourg, Lazio and Berlin, and the “City” in Sidney, have also been upgraded by relocating them. The latter is part of the company’s commitment to a new type of showroom or “City” that is more digital and geared towards professionals, who have seen their networks grow with the new openings in Barcelona, Tel-Aviv, and Amsterdam.

With these new openings, the multinational closed 2020 with a total of 142 business and sales units spread over five continents. This figure is broken down into 118 “Centers”, 15 “Citys”, 4 distribution Hubs (3 in the USA and 1 in Australia), and 5 logistics operators. In addition to these sites, the company has 12 production facilities in the US.