Swedish kitchen furniture group Nobia, owner of UK brand Magnet, has unveiled plans to further consolidate its manufacturing operations in the UK as part of its ongoing UK transformation strategy.
The company will be relocating its current manufacturing facility in Halifax to the Darlington manufacturing site, with the building in Halifax set to be repurposed as a storage facility.
The closure of the Halifax manufacturing site is expected to incur a total cost of approximately 4.7 MGBP, of which 2.2 MGBP is non-cash. The cost will be included in Nobia’s second quarter results as items affecting comparability.
Approximately 60 full-time equivalent employees in Halifax will be affected by the consolidation. Nobia is committed to supporting impacted team members and exploring alternative employment opportunities wherever feasible.
“Our UK transformation is going according to plan and the closure of Halifax forms part of our initiative to considerably lower our fixed cost base and restore profitability in the UK” said Jon Sintorn, President and CEO, Nobia.
Nobia has also proposed current Board Member Tony Buffin to be appointed Chairman of the Board. The Nomination Committee ahead of the 2024 Annual General Meeting of Nobia AB has also proposed that Nora F. Larssen, Marlene Forsell, Carsten Rasmussen, Fredrik Ahlin are re-elected as Board Members. Accordingly, Jan Svensson and David Haydon will step down from the Board.
“Firstly, we would like to extend our sincere gratitude to Jan Svensson for his valuable contributions as Chairman of the Board of Nobia and we would also like to thank David Haydon for his important contribution to the Company. We are delighted that Tony Buffin has accepted the role of new Chairman of the Board. We now have a Board of Directors that can work closely together with our newly appointed CEO long term and actively support the company in executing the strategic plan that forms the basis of the recently communicated rights share issue,” says Peter Hofvenstam, Chairman of the Nomination Committee of Nobia.
“Since joining the Board, I have been impressed by Nobia’s unique position and expertise. Our Jönköping factory will play a key role in redefining not only how Nobia does business, but the kitchen industry as a whole. We have also made important progress in turning around the UK business. I will do my utmost to support Nobia throughout this very important phase,” says Tony Buffin, Board member and proposed new Chairman of the Board of Nobia.
Tony Buffin has extensive experience of leading major transformations, and he has long and unique experience from the kitchen industry. Tony Buffin has been a Board member since 2022 and is currently CEO of Tecsa Group and Chairman of the Board of Highbourne Group. He has previously held a number of positions relevant to this assignment, including board member of Kingfisher plc and CEO of Holland & Barrett.
