Fondazione Fiera Milano approves its 2017 financial statements

Milan, 26 June 2018 - The Governing Body of Fondazione Fiera Milano, chaired by Giovanni Gorno Tempini, has approved, according to its Articles of Association, the financial statements as at 31 December 2017 and the Consolidated Financial Statements for Fondazione Fiera Milano.

In 2017 Fondazione scored an economic and financial surplus, based on consolidating its equity base and new strategic guidelines outlined in the 2017-2019 Business Plan, approved by the Statutory Bodies in office since September 2016. This plan is an expression of the new outlook on the part of Fondazione geared towards stepping up the competitiveness of the trade fair/congress hub and the new governance of the Group. Moreover, from an in-house perspective, the plan has contributed to upgrading the corporate system with new rules and procedures, to the development of a new policy for sponsoring and donations as well as to boosting competence.

The 2017 yearly financial statements for Fondazione Fiera Milano recorded a growth in Shareholders’ Equity to 658.3 million euro from 656.5 million euro in 2016, which allowed for improving its financial structure. Also worth noting is the reduction in the long-term financial deficit, including the short-term, share, from 142.020 million euro in 2016 to the current 115.880 million euro. An increase was also scored in the Gross Operating Margin (GOM), from 37.5 to 41.7 million euro.

The 2017 Financial Statements marked an important step towards implementing the new Business Plan, characterized by the dual role of Fondazione Fiera Milano as proactive shareholder in its subsidiary Fiera Milano on the one hand, and as long-term investor on the other.

Implementing this Plan has mainly involved reshaping governance structures at Group level and consolidating the equity structure through a new financial strategy for the acquisition of new resources in the long term, upgrading exhibition facilities, through photovoltaic energy, as well as mobility and parking projects: an investment plan totaling about 100 million euro.

“With its new 2017-2019 Business Plan – said Fondazione’s Chairman Gorno Tempini - Fondazione Fiera Milano is taking on exceptional challenges. We expect to achieve the ambitious objects of the new Plan, based on our statutory aims and in the service of the trade fair system in the Milan area, for an increasingly attractive and competitive positioning of our exhibition site as functional excellence hub at international level. Moreover, Fondazione aims to take on a strategic role as “corporate foundation” in the area of culture, research, innovation and for the community, thus becoming an important player for the development of the region in line with its Articles of Association".