Forbo Group has had a challenging financial year 2025. Although net sales fell only slightly, lower capacity utilisation and increased costs put considerable pressure on the operating result. The Flooring Systems division in particular suffered from a stagnating renovation and construction market in Europe.
© Forbo Flooring Systems
The annual figures just presented show that Forbo will achieve net sales of 1,085.4 million Swiss francs (CHF) in 2025. In local currency, this is a minuscule fall of 0.3%, but due to the strong Swiss franc exchange rate, the fall in the reporting currency comes to 3.3%. However, profitability took a harder hit: operating profit (EBIT) fell 27.2% to CHF 87.8 million.
Struggling European core markets
For the Flooring Systems division, responsible for flooring solutions, 2025 was a year of headwinds. The construction and renovation market in Europe was "slow and highly competitive", according to Forbo. In addition, sudden additional import duties on exports of Swiss and European products to the US negatively impacted margins.
The division posted sales of CHF 738.2 million, down 3.6% on the previous year. Forbo stresses that it is trying to strengthen the resilience of the flooring division through continuous product innovation (such as the climate-positive Marmoleum) and optimisations in the supply chain.
New leadership
Despite macroeconomic uncertainties, Forbo is investing in the future. For example, the management team has been renewed, with Johannes Huber taking office as the new CEO on 1 January 2026 and Heinz Hössli starting as CFO on 1 July.
Operationally, Forbo has taken steps to reduce its dependence on trade barriers:
- United States: Flooring Systems' presence has been strengthened to better serve the local market.
- Japan: Production capacity for Movement Systems has been further expanded.
No recovery in sight yet
For the current year 2026, Forbo expects market conditions to remain challenging. According to the group, there are currently no signs of a broad-based economic recovery. The focus will therefore be on sharper customer focus, innovation and strict cost discipline. Forbo expects slightly lower sales for 2026 due to currency effects, but is targeting a profit slightly above the 2025 level.
Despite the lower profit, the Executive Board proposes to leave the dividend unchanged at CHF 25.00 per share, demonstrating confidence in the company's solid balance sheet.
Source: Annual Report Forbo Group
