Mips AB, the Stockholm, Sweden-based helmet safety technology company, reported a strong start to 2026, delivering organic growth of 25 percent, with strong growth coming from all categories. The newly acquired Koroyd contributed with 18 percent growth in the quarter. Exchange rate fluctuations cut into revenue growth by 13 percent.

First quarter sales increase of 30 percent to SEK 151 million on a reported basis from SEK 116 million in the year-ago quarter. The 25 percent organic increase in net sales was said to be mainly attributed to positive sales trends in the Snow and Bike sub-categories. As of 31 December 2025, Koroyd has been consolidated into the reported and has contributed with SEK 21 million in net sales for the 2026 first quarter.

“Our scalable business model meant that our underlying profitability improved significantly in the period,” stated company President and CEO Max Strandwitz. “However, the impact of the strong Swedish krona and legal costs continued to impact negatively in the quarter.” Legal costs for the quarter amounted to SEK 7 million, compared to SEK 9 million in the year-ago quarter.

The legal costs were reportedly due to Mips’ involvement in a patent dispute in which one of its customers in the U.S. is a party.

“Mips is not a party to the lawsuit, but since the dispute concerns areas where Mips has intellectual property rights that are an important cornerstone of our strong brand, Mips has chosen to get involved,” Strandwitz said. He said Mips’ own intellectual property rights are not part of this dispute.

“We intend to continue supporting our customer in this dispute, which we expect will continue throughout 2026,” he continued. “To facilitate better follow-up of the underlying operations, we have decided to classify these costs as items affecting comparability from 2025 onwards.”

The CEO continued with his letter to investors, saying, “We are pleased with our progress and, above all, with how we continue to gain market share and strengthen our position with both new and existing customers, which is by no means a given in a challenging business environment.”

He said the European market, in particular, continued to perform well for the Group, and they see customer penetration developing in line with Mips’ long-term strategic plan.

“Our customers’ sales to end customers were also strong during the quarter, and we expect this trend to continue going forward. Several factors are driving the overall market trend, such as increased bicycle commuting and the rise in electric two-wheeled vehicles,” Strandwitz said.

Sales to the U.S. reportedly continued to perform well, with solid organic growth during the quarter, despite the fact that “customers continue to see consumers being slightly more cautious about purchases.” Strandwitz noted that growth at Mips continues to be driven by its increasing market share and customer penetration, including helmets in the lower price segments.

“We did deliver organic sales growth to Asia and Australia in the quarter and it is good to see that sales are starting recover after a soft period, especially in the Chinese market,” the CEO summarized.

The impact of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East was said to have been limited during the quarter.

“At this point, it is difficult to assess the potential outcome of the conflict and the impact it may have on consumer demand going forward,” he said. “We have not yet seen any material impact on the supply chain due to the ongoing conflict, primarily because Mips Group’s customers are responsible for shipping costs associated with delivery. Neither have we yet experienced any actual price increases for the materials we use, but many of our suppliers have indicated that a prolonged conflict will result in higher prices. If cost increases become substantial for Mips, we intend to pass these costs on to customers.”

Koroyd Integration
With the acquisition of Koroyd, which was completed at the end of 2025, Mips now has a complementary product portfolio in helmet safety solutions and has also created new strategic openings with exciting opportunities to enter adjacent categories such as body protection, protective gloves, and footwear.

The Koroyd brand is now reported as part of the Group’s sales within existing category structure, as Koroyd has historically already followed the logic of the three categories of Sports, Motorcycle, and Safety for which Mips reports sales separately, and has been included in the category reporting starting the first quarter of 2026.

Revenue by Category
The Group’s revenue primarily comprises sales of component kits (license and components) to helmet manufacturers. Sales of services is attributable to the development of Mips’ technology and Koroyd’s technology for a specific customer and helmet model.

Helmet Category Sports
Consolidated revenues for the first quarter in Sports increased by 24 percent y/y, with organic growth amounted to 28 percent.

The positive trend in the Bike sub-category continued during the quarter, marking the tenth consecutive quarter of growth in the important market. The main driver behind the increase was said to be the development of the European market, but the company said it is also encouraging to see that cycling in the U.S. has steadily increased over the past year, primarily driven by bicycle commuting.

In the Snow sub-category, Mips said it is seeing continued positive performance despite a challenging season, particularly in the U.S. In the U.S. winter sports market, sales to end customers were said to be weaker as snowfall at many of the major ski resorts in the western U.S. was lower than it has been for many years.

In the European market, performance was said to be strong in the Snow sub-category, particularly at the start of the season when the majority of equipment is purchased for of the season. For Mips as a company, the strong sales growth in the European snow market was said to be primarily driven by customers continuing to increase the penetration of Mips’ technology within their product ranges.

“The Winter Olympics were held during the quarter, with a large proportion of the athletes’ helmets equipped with Mips Group’s technologies,” Strandwitz highlighted. “We were especially happy to see our Mips ambassador Mikaela Shiffrin win her third Olympic gold medal and also secure her sixth overall World Cup victory and her ninth overall Slalom Cup victory.

“During the quarter, we also held our first joint brand event in Alta Badia, Italy, with Mips and Koroyd, which highlighted the synergies of promoting both of our brands together cost-effectively,” he continued. “In March, we also participated in the year’s first consumer-focused cycling event, Cyclingworld in Düsseldorf, which drew over 50,000 visitors. The event provided a valuable opportunity to meet German cycling enthusiasts, and we noted a high level of brand awareness in the important German market.”

Helmet Category Motorcycle
Motorcycle category revenues increased by 33 percent, with organic growth pegged at 16 percent y/y. The positive trend was was said to be “particularly strong” in the Off-Road sub-category.

“It is gratifying to see that our hard work and new innovations are beginning to bear fruit in the on-road motorcycle as well, and we believe that this will contribute to a more balanced customer base in the long term by including more on-road motorcycle helmets. We will continue the high pace of launches of on-road motorcycle helmets with leading brands throughout the year,” the CEO noted.

In the Off-Road sub-category, Mips has extended its partnership with MXGP, the world motocross tour. This provides the brand with a stronger brand communication platform and allows it to reach a highly dedicated audience.

“Our partner, the Honda Racing Team, has also added two new drivers, Jeffrey Herlings and Tom Vialle, to the team; both have had a strong start to the season and are contenders for the overall World Cup title. We have also initiated a partnership in the American Supercross series with Troy Lee Design, Red Bull, and the Ducati Factory Racing Team, which further raises our visibility in the U.S.,” Strandwitz explained. “With our initiatives in MXGP, our partnership with Spanish Moto GP star Joan Mir, and two of the top motocross teams, we have a stronger platform than ever in the Motorcycle category, which will help us further strengthen our position in this category.”

Helmet Category Safety
Safety category revenues increased by 135 percent y/y, which was said to be due to Koroyd being included. Organic growth in Safety amounted to 6 percent.

“In the Safety category, we are seeing momentum start to return following a challenging period marked by customer caution due to uncertainties surrounding U.S. tariff developments in 2025,” Strandwitz offered. “Historically, the first quarter is the slowest quarter in terms of sales within the Safety category, and our assessment is that we will see significantly higher sales in this category during the year, driven partly by the inclusion of Koroyd, but also by the development of Mips’ product portfolio, with many helmet manufacturers now investing in a number of new product launches following a period of uncertainty related to tariffs.”

Thanks to the Koroyd acquisition, the CEO said, Mips can now offer a broader and more comprehensive product portfolio including gloves and body protection, and will also be rolling out many of newly developed products, particularly through the launch of “full brimmed” helmets in the U.S.

“This is the largest market for premium helmets, and the market that Mips as a group is primarily focused on,” he noted.

Sales by Region
The Group’s revenue is concentrated to customers in North America and Europe. The substantial concentration of sales in North America was explained by the large number of helmet manufacturers based in the geographical region. Specification by region is based on customers’ domicile and not distribution.

Revenues increased during the first quarter with 30 percent mainly driven by North America with a growth of 44 percent percent and Europe with a growth of 31 percent. Asia and Australia had a negative growth of 1 percent and Sweden a negative growth of 15 percent.

Organic growth increased by 28 percent in North America, in Europe by 39 percent and in Asia and Australia by 6 percent. Sweden had negative organic growth of 6 percent.

Profitability & Expenses
Gross profit increased by 29 percent to SEK 107 million in Q1. The gross margin amounted to 71.1 percent of sales for the quarter, a 100 basis point dip from the 2025 first quarter.

Operating profit, or EBIT, increased by 78 percent y/y to SEK 43 million, or 28.6 percent of sales, compared to SEK 24 million, or 20.9 percent in the year-ago quarter. Operating profit growth was said to be mainly explained by the increase in sales. Operating profit adjusted for items affecting comparability amounted to SEK 50 million (SEK 33 mm in Q1 2025) and operating margin adjusted for items affecting comparability to 33.2 percent (28.8 percent in Q1 2025). Items affecting comparability consist of the previously mentioned legal costs in the quarter.

Selling expenses amounted to SEK 24 million in Q1 2026, compared to SEK 20 million in 2025. Administrative expenses amounted to SEK 27 million. Research and development costs amounted to SEK 15 million.

Profit before tax (PBT) amounted to SEK 37 million in Q1, compared to SEK 25 million in Q1 2025.

The effective tax rate was 21.1 percent in Q1, compared to 24.0 percent in Q1 2025. The decrease in effective tax rate is partly explained by tax credits attributable to research and development in Koroyd of SEK 1 million.

Profit for the period was SEK 29 million in the first quarter, compared to SEK 19 million in the year-ago quarter. Diluted earnings per share amounted to SEK 1.09 in Q1, compared to SEK 0.71 in Q1 2025.

Currency Exposure
The Group invoices its customers in three foreign currencies, US$, EUR and CNY. Mips AB’s license fee, which represents the majority of the company’s revenues, is invoiced in US$ and fluctuations in the exchange rate have a significant impact on Mips’ net sales and profitability. A 10 percent change in the US$ exchange rate would impact EBIT with approximately +/- SEK 30 million on the full-year figures for 2025. From 2025 fluctuations in exchange rates fully affect the income statement. Mips DG’s sales of components are in China and are invoiced in CNY. However, since the company has both revenues and costs related to components in CNY, the exposure to the CNY exchange rate is relatively limited. The Koroyd subsidiary has EUR as currency, which means that the currency exposure in the Group has increased during the first quarter. Koroyd’s revenues and costs are primarily in EUR, which means that the transaction exposure to EUR is relatively limited.

Cash Flow
Cash flow from operating activities amounted to SEK 18 million, roughly half that of the 2025 Q1 period. The change was said to be attributed to an increase of accounts receivables, driven by later invoicing due to the Chinese New Year compared to previous year.

Cash flow from investing activities was SEK -3 million, flat to last year. Cash flow from financing activities was SEK -52 million, compared to (SEK -1 million in Q1 last year. The decrease was explained by amortization of a loan amounting to SEK 50 million.

Cash flow for the period amounted to SEK -38 million, compared to positive cash flow of SEK 32 million in Q1 2025.

Financial Position as of March 31
The Group’s total assets as of March 31 amounted to SEK 1,307 million, flat to last year’s end of quarter level.

Non-current assets amounted to SEK 880 million, whereof surplus value in terms of goodwill of SEK 570 million and trademark of SEK 120 million are attributable to Koroyd. Assets held for sale amounted to SEK 5 million and refers to a lease agreement in the subsidiary Koroyd.

Cash and cash equivalents amounted to SEK 180 million at quarter-end.

Image courtesy Mips and Smith