BANG & OLUFSEN HEAD SOUNDS OFF AFTER SLUMP

Bang & Olufsen was founded in 1925 by Peter Bang and Svend Olufsen

They began work in the attic of Olufsen’s parents’ manor house

Its factory was burned down by Nazi sympathisers in the Second World War

The firm now employs around 900 staff in more than 70 markets

Products range from £130 for headphones to almost £59,000 for its Beolab90 loudspeakers

The company is listed in Copenhagen and is worth around £227m

BANG & Olufsen’s boss has pledged to revive its fortunes after sales and profits plunged.

Profit at the upmarket television and speaker maker more than halved to £7.1m in the year to May, down from £14.7m for the previous 12 months, following problems with distribution and the launch of fewer new products. Sales also dropped, falling 13.6pc to £341m.

Henrik Clausen, chief executive, said: ‘It has been a disappointing year.’

He added the next 12 months will be challenging, but the firm hopes to return to growth in the final half. The Danish group has long focused on the high-end audio market. B&O has been shutting unprofitable stores and opening shops in major cities such as London, New York, Paris, Shanghai and Tokyo in an effort to boost sales.

Clausen added: ‘We have had stores which have not necessarily been located in the right places.

‘It’s fine to be in France but if you aren’t in Paris and if you don’t have a location which is relevant to where your customers are, you don’t execute precisely on your brand or sales.’