PRESS RELEASE
 

ALNO attracts a new major shareholder
 

- Nature Home Holding Company subscribes to 5.5 million new shares

- The issuing price at 1.05 euros is significantly above the current price

- The investor is a sales partner in China, and will in future hold 9.09 percent of the share capital of ALNO AG
 

Pfullendorf, March 30, 2015 - ALNO AG has attracted Nature Home Holding Company Limited, Cayman Islands, ("Nature") as a further anchor shareholder. Nature, listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, has today concluded an investment agreement with ALNO AG under which it undertakes to buy new ALNO AG shares derived from a capital increase for cash from the existing authorised capital which is still to be undertaken. The company will issue 5.5 million new shares with shareholders' subscription rights excluded at the issuing price of 1.05 euros per new share. Nature will purchase all the new shares. Furthermore, Nature has announced that it purchased about 1.375 million shares recently. This means the company will in future hold a total of about 9.09 percent of the share capital of ALNO AG. Nature and ALNO have already been working together in China for two years.

"We are delighted to have attracted Nature as a further anchor shareholder for ALNO AG. This demonstrates the high level of confidence that our Chinese partner has for us and in us," says Max Müller, CEO of ALNO AG, with pleasure. "This strengthens our company on international markets in particular, as well as in the German capital market. At the same time, the investment by Nature gives us further motivation to focus all our efforts on pushing ahead with the reorientation of ALNO AG," continues Müller.

According to Se Hok Pan, CEO and Chairman of the Board of the Nature Home Holding Company, "This investment is an important development in the mutual cooperation between ALNO and Nature. We are looking forward to a long-lasting partnership with ALNO."
 

ALNO AG receives about 5.8 million euros from the capital increase
 

The capital increase provides ALNO AG with liquid funds amounting to about 5.8 million euros in total. The new capital is to be used first and foremost to push ahead with the reorientation of ALNO AG so as to deliver a sustainable improvement to the basis for the company's operating results.
 

More than 4,000 "Nature" shops in China
 

The Nature Home Holding Company Limited is listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and employs about 3,500 people. Nature produces and sells products which include floor coverings, wardrobes, wooden doors and kitchen cabinets. The "Nature" brand is one of the market leaders in the Chinese floor covering market. The company operates more than 4,300 stores. Its products are drawn from its own production as well as being sourced from established manufacturers.
 

"Ideal combination" since two years
 

Nature and ALNO have been working together in China since July 2013. Nature is the exclusive cooperation partner for "Wellmann" products in China. It attracts dealers who open kitchen studios and flagship stores in China with sizes ranging from 200 to 800 square metres, under the "Wellmann" name. The preferred locations will be exclusive shopping areas in large cities. Five showrooms have already been opened, and the number is expected to reach up to 20 by the end of 2015.

ALNO CEO Max Müller: "The commercial successes achieved so far have prompted Nature to make a long-term investment in ALNO AG. At the same time, this investment will guarantee us a profitable business in China for the foreseeable future. For us, that represents an ideal combination and is certainly unparalleled in the German kitchen industry."

 

About ALNO AG:

ALNO AG is one of Germany's leading kitchen manufacturers, with a staff of around 2,300 employees. The business area encompasses development, production and sale of kitchen furniture as well as on selling electrical appliances and accessories. From its seven national and international production sites, the corporation provides a full range of kitchens to worldwide markets. In addition to the core ALNO brand, the ALNO Group also owns the Wellmann, Impuls, Pino, Piatti and ALNOINOX brands. The ALNO Group operates in more than 64 countries worldwide with over 6,000 sales partners. In financial year 2013, the company recorded sales revenue of 395 million euros. Around 33 per cent of this revenue was generated abroad.

Contact:

Jürgen Schulze-Ferebee
Head of Corporate Communications & Investor Relations

ALNO AG
Heiligenbergerstrasse 47
88630 Pfullendorf, Germany
Tel.: +49 / 75 52 / 21 - 33 16
Fax: +49 / 75 52 / 21 - 77 3316
Email: presse@alno.de
www.alno.de

Legal note:
This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements that are based on current assumptions and prognoses made by the corporate management of ALNO AG or its affiliated companies. Various known and unknown risks and uncertainties as well as other factors may lead to significant deviations in the actual results, financial position, development or performance of ALNO AG and its affiliated companies from the opinions and estimates provided here. Neither ALNO AG nor its affiliated companies are under any obligation to update such forward-looking statements or to revise them in light of future events or developments.