Thule Group President and CEO Mattias said Wednesday the “market remained tough” in the third quarter with a negative impact on sales, but noted that operating margins were higher than historical levels. The comments, which came in the form of a company CEO statement with the release of Q3 results on October 22, underscored the type of challenges companies are currently facing with sluggish consumer engagement and spending.

Ankarberg said the company’s newest product categories continued to perform well, and the work to build a larger, more profitable Thule continued at a high pace.

Third-quarter sales increased 7.9 percent year-over-year (y/y) to SEK 2.53 billion (~$268 million), with 17.0 percentage points of the increase coming from the acquisition of Quad Lock. The company also saw a negative 5.1 percent impact from exchange rate fluctuations. Organically, sales declined 4.0 percent.

Thule Group reports in the Swedish krona (SEK) currency. All currency translations to U.S. dollars ($) or European Commission euros (€) were completed at the day of the report’s publishing, unless otherwise noted.

The CEO said the market has not yet shown signs of recovery, with consumers and retailers remaining cautious in both Europe and North America.

“Our decision to launch more new products early in the year has been successful and our organic sales increased during the peak season,” Ankarberg noted. “However, retailers remain cautious and chose not to replenish at the end of the season, which had an impact on third-quarter sales. Our newest product categories, dog transportation and child car seats, continued to grow rapidly while at the same time the acquired Quad Lock added new sales.”

Regions
Thule Group changed how it follows up on its sales regions and reports in accordance with the new structure from the first quarter of 2025. The new structure is adapted to Thule Group’s management structure.

Europe
Europe net sales grew 1.6 percent y/y to SEK 1.68 billion (~€154 million) for the third quarter. Organic sales declined 4.8 percent year-over-year. Sales in the quarter were said to be affected by retailers being cautious about replenishing at the end of the season. Roof Racks and All-Terrain Strollers reportedly “performed well,” while sales of Bike Trailers declined. The new categories of child car seats and dog transportation were said to have “developed positively.” For RV products, sales increased despite the industry going through a weaker period.

North America
North America sales increased 10.0 percent y/y to SEK 611 million (~$65 million) in the third quarter. Organically, sales declined 5.3 percent. The market reportedly remains weak with cautious retailers and consumers. Sales for Active with Kids & Dogs have increased while Sport & Cargo Carriers decreased slightly. The development in Canada was said to be better than in the U.S.

“We have been active in addressing the impact of the increased tariffs and at the same time the North American region has been given more focus, in terms both of product development and of sales,” Ankarberg said.

Successful launches of bike carriers for the U.S .market reportedly improved the sales trend for the second quarter and continued in the third quarter. Ankarberg said the fourth quarter will see the launch of Thule Xscape, an easy to install premium product enabling the safe transportation of skis, surfboards, rooftop tents and other equipment on pick-up trucks.

“Challenges clearly remain with the North American market, but we are focusing on what we can influence and, each quarter, the development is going in the right direction,” the CEO added.

Rest of World
Rest of World region net sales jumped 75.2 percent y/y to SEK 237 million, reportedly driven by the acquisition of Quad Lock. Organic sales growth was 11.0 percent. Sales in Asia reportedly delivered a better growth in the third quarter than sales in South America.

Category Sales
From the first quarter of 2025, Thule Group now reports in accordance with new product categories. The sales trends of the product categories are shown both as reported and as organic (adjusted for acquisitions and for exchange rate fluctuations).

Sport and Cargo Carriers
Sport & Cargo Carriers category sales decreased by 6 percent organically in the third quarter and by 1 percent in the first three quarters of the year. Sales of newly launched products, such as the two bike carriers adapted for the North American market, have continued to develop well. However, sales of seasonal products have been negatively affected by retailers being cautious about replenishing stock levels at the end of the summer season. Sport & Cargo Carriers accounted for 53 percent of total sales in the third quarter.

RV (Recreational Vehicles) Products
Category sales for the quarter increased 5 percent organically in the third quarter and during the first three quarters of the year, organic sales increased by 3 percent . The industry has been experiencing a weaker period for a long time, while Thule’s sales in the last three quarters nevertheless increased. Sales to aftermarket retailers increased, while sales to manufacturers decreased. RV Products accounted for 15 percent of total sales in the quarter. About 95 percent of sales take place in the European market.

Bags and Mounts
Sales decreased by 5 percent organically in the third quarter and by 14 percent during the first three quarters of the year. Of Bags & Mounts’ total sales in the quarter, the acquired Quad Lock accounted for 67 percent of sales. Including Quad Lock, sales have increased by 189 percent in the third quarter. Sales of bags under the Thule brand increased, while sales of other bags for laptops and other electronics decreased. North America accounts for the largest share of bag sales, which is a market with weak demand. Bags & Mounts accounted for 22 percent of total sales during the quarter.

Quad Lock has continued to develop its market-leading position and increased its organic sales by about 5 percent in the third quarter and by about 15 percent in the first three quarters of the year. The comparative figures for the third quarter were impacted by retail inventory build-up during last year.

Active with Kids and Dogs
Category sales decreased 7 percent y/y organically in the third quarter and by 3 percent y/y in the first three quarters of the year. The two new categories, dog transportation and child car seats, have developed well. In June, Thule Cappy, a crash-tested safety harness for dogs, was launched and has had a good start. In the car seat category, Thule Palm was launched in the third quarter, a high-back booster seat for older children. The areas in Active with Kids & Dogs that performed weakest were bike-related products, mainly due to a cautious bike market with retailers wanting to maintain low inventory levels. Active with Kids & Dogs accounted for 10 percent of total sales.

Improved Efficiency and Cost Control
Ankarberg said cost awareness is part of Thule culture and their Småland mindset.

“In the first six months, we decided to keep our foot on the gas with many successful product launches, even if they come with an increase in costs. A lower third-quarter launch pace means we are now realizing the effects of ongoing efficiency improvements, which contribute to increased gross margins and reduced costs,” he said.

Ankarberg reported that that Thule has increased the share of in-house manufactured components to more efficiently leverage available capacity in its own factories. In addition, The company has also consolidated warehouses and closed smaller third-party warehouses to save costs and increase efficiency in the larger warehouse facilities. Within product development, sales, and marketing, Ankarberg said they have introduced AI services, which are used for translation and image processing, which reportedly saves time and are more cost-efficient.

“During the year, we have also decided on a number of structural cost reductions, the CEO noted. He said the organizational changes in North America have been implemented and the warehouse automation project in Poland was said to be “on track,” with expected annual savings of SEK 100 million through 2028.

North America Changes
Earlier in the year, Thule implemented changes in North America to streamline the structure and focus growth initiatives.

The company filed a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Notice with the State of Colorado in April 2025, indicating that the company will eliminate 22 positions  of the 40 positions in its Longmont, Colorado location in Boulder County. The action was expected to occur earlier this month on October 3, 2025.

Profitability and Cash Flow
Third quarter gross margin increased 4.6 percentage points to 47.5 percent of sales, compared to 42.9 percent in the year-ago quarter. Gross income for the quarter totaled SEK 1.20 billion, compared to SEK 1.00 million in Q3 2024. The higher gross margin was said to be due to the acquisition of Quad Lock, price increases, efficiency gains and an improved product mix.

EBIT margin for the quarter amounted to 17.9 percent of sales, compared to  17.6 percent in the prior-year Q3 period.

“We are pleased that the [EBIT] margin has increased both compared to the previous year and the average historical level, despite the tough market situation,” Ankarberg said. “Continued improvements to the product mix and our supply chain efficiency contributed to record-high gross margins. As planned, our decision to launch more products in the first half of this year resulted in product development costs decreasing compared with last year.”

Excluding the acquired Quad Lock, other expenses also decreased year-on-year. Overall, EBIT increased to SEK 453 million, compared to SEK 413 million in q3 last year.

Operating income amounted to SEK 453 million, or 17.9 percent of net sales, compared to SEK 413 million, or 17.6 percent of net sales, in the 2024 third quarter. The acquisition of Quad Lock was said to be a positive contribution to operating income. Still, excluding the acquisition, the margin would have increased 20 basis points to 17.8 percent of net sales.

The company said more products were launched earlier in the year in 2025, which led to of a higher share of product development costs earlier in the year. Depreciation and amortization amounted to SEK 90 million, compared to  SEK 76 million in Q3 2024, which was said to be driven by acquisitions and a higher rate of investment.

Net income amounted to SEK 314 million, or SEK 2.91 per share, in the third quarter. For the corresponding period last year, net income totaled SEK 300 million, corresponding to earnings per share of SEK 2.84 before and after dilution.

Cash flow from operating activities for the quarter was SEK 668 million, compared to SEK 955 million in Q3 last year. Cash flow from operating activities before changes in working capital amounted to SEK 376 million (SEK 333 million in Q3 2024).

Investments during the quarter amounted to SEK 140 million, most of which relates to automation of the company’s logistics facility in Poland. A SEK 100 million repayment of the RCF was made in the quarter.

Building New Categories
Following what Ankarberg called an “intense” first half of the year, Thule launched fewer products in the third quarter.

“New Thule products clearly drive growth, particularly in areas where we hold strong market positions,” the CEO suggested. “One example is RV Products, our category for recreational vehicles where while the market is still going through a tough period we have shown organic growth all year. All of this growth is attributable to new products launched in the last 18 months.”

While there were fewer launches in total in the third quarter, Ankarberg said efforts to build the company’s newest product categories has continued at a high pace. Thule Cappy, a crash-tested dog car harness, launched in June was said to be well received and the first shipment quickly sold out. In the third quarter, the company also launched Thule Palm, a high back booster seat for older children, which gives Thule a premium range of car seats to fit all ages.

Toward the end of last year, Thule added another category through the acquisition of Quad Lock, the global market leader in performance phone mounts.

“The integration of Quad Lock, which will soon have been part of Thule for a full year, is proceeding as planned and Quad Lock has continued to perform well,” Ankarberg noted. “Among other initiatives, we opened a new joint sourcing office in Shenzhen, China in the third quarter, where colleagues from both organizations can draw on each other’s expertise on the ground.”

Image courtesy Thule Group