STOCKMANN GROUP'S SALES IN MARCH 2006

STOCKMANN plc STOCK EXCHANGE RELEASE April 11, 2006, at 10.45

STOCKMANN GROUP'S SALES IN MARCH 2006

The Stockmann Group's sales in March were EUR 107.0 million. Consolidated sales, eliminating the divested Zara business in Russia and the Stockmann Auto business that was transferred to new owners on March 1, 2006, were up 9 per cent. The Zara business is carried on in Russia for the account of Inditex of Spain as from January 1, 2006, providing that the sale of the subsidiary carrying on the Zara business in Russia closes, in accordance with the terms and conditions of the deal, during the spring. Without the elimination of the sales in 2005 of the Zara stores in Russia and sales by Stockmann Auto in 2005, the Group's sales decreased by 19 per cent.

Sales by the Department Store Division, eliminating the Zara business in Russia, grew by 15 per cent. Sales in Finland rose by 10 per cent and sales abroad by 31 per cent. Sales in Finland were lifted by the new department store that was opened in the Jumbo Shopping Centre in Vantaa, near Helsinki, in October 2005. Sales abroad were lifted by strong like- for-like growth in sales in all market areas as well as the building out of the Bestseller chain in Russia. If the divested Zara business in Russia is not eliminated from the Department Store Division's comparative figures, the division posted sales growth of 11 per cent and growth in sales abroad of 14 per cent.

Seppälä's sales were up 8 per cent. Sales in Finland were down 2 per cent. Sales abroad grew by 68 per cent, which was attributable to the building out of the store network in Russia, Lithuania and Latvia as well as especially strong growth in same-store sales.

Hobby Hall's sales were down 12 per cent. The division's sales were down 10 per cent in Finland and down 19 per cent abroad. The decrease in sales was due to the different campaign schedule compared with the previous year.

In Finland March had two sales days more than in 2005 when Easter fell in March.

Sales figures in March and in January-March

March January-March January- December

changechange
20062005 perc.20062005perc.2005
MeMe 06/05MeMe06/05Me
Department Store58.052.610.3173.5159.88.6797.1
Division, Finland Department Store 21.4 16.3 31.3 62.2 47.2 32.0 227.0 Division, international operations* Department Store 79.5 68.9 15.3 235.8 207.0 13.9 1 024.1 Division, total*
Stockmann Auto*74.864.316.364.3
Hobby Hall, Finland14.115.7 -10.043.248.8-11.3176.5
Hobby Hall,3.03.7 -18.89.311.7-20.434.0
international operations
Hobby Hall, total17.119.4 -11.752.660.5-13.1210.5
Seppälä, Finland8.18.2-1.725.726.0-1.2132.4
Seppälä, international2.31.368.06.74.165.122.9
operations
Seppälä, total10.39.68.132.430.07.8155.2
Real estate + others0.10.1-5.90.20.2-4.00.9
Operations in Finland,80.376.64.9317.5299.16.11 171.2
total International 26.7 21.4 24.9 78.3 62.9 24.4 283.9 operations, total* Stockmann total* 107.0 98.0 9.2 395.7 362.0 9.3 1 455.1

* The figures for 2005 do not include the Zara business in Russia that was sold at the turn of the year nor the March-December sales by the Stockmann Auto division that was divested at the beginning of March 2006. If the full-year sales in 2005 by Zara Russia and Stockmann Auto are included in the comparison figures, the change of sales in per cent in January-March 2006 was:

Department Store Division, international operations16.1
Department Store Division, total10.5
Operations in Finland, total-4.2
International operations, total12.8
Stockmann total-1.2

STOCKMANN plc

Hannu Penttilä CEO

DISTRIBUTION Helsinki Stock Exchange Principal media





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