Internationalization of Polarn O. Pyret continues – master franchise agreement signed for Estonia and Latvia

Polarn O. Pyret has signed a master franchise agreement for Estonia and Latvia. The master franchisee is Swed-Baltic OÜ, whose principal owner has extensive experience of specialist retailing in these markets. Polarn O. Pyret has already signed a master franchise agreement for the Norwegian market.

Establishment of the brand will occur through Swed-Baltic OÜ, an Estonian master franchisee whose principal owner previously launched the Italian brand Terranova successfully in Estonia and Latvia, and also conducts operations in Denmark. Initially, four stores are planned – two in Tallinn and two in Riga – with the opening of the first store in Tallinn scheduled for spring 2005. “Interest from people and companies that want to launch Polarn O. Pyret in new markets is considerable,” says Cecilia Tufvesson Marlow, President of Polarn O. Pyret. “The fact that we chose Estonia and Latvia this time is due to a combination of several factors. These countries are part of our neighboring market and are also ranked among the fastest-growing economies in Europe. There is a strong flow of tourists to the countries and the nations’ purchasing power is increasing sharply, at the same time as new shopping malls are emerging at a fast pace and demand for quality is considerable. On the whole, we see major potential for a strong brand like Polarn O. Pyret,” concludes Cecilia Tufvesson Marlow. In parallel with the continued internationalization of Polarn O. Pyret, the brand’s expansion in Norway is proceeding as planned. During spring 2005, a new Polarn O. Pyret store will be opened in Stavanger, which will be the fifth store in Norway since the brand was launched there in October 2003. For further information, please contact: Cecilia Tufvesson Marlow, President, Polarn O. Pyret; tel. +46-8-670 95 34, e-mail: cecila.tufvesson@rnb.se Mikael Solberg, President, RNB Retail and Brands; tel. +46-8-670 95 99, e-mail: mikael.solberg@rnb.se