Verkkokauppa.com Oyj COMPANY RELEASE September 27, 2017 at 7:58
The founder and long-term CEO of Verkkokauppa.com, Samuli Seppälä, has decided to step down from his executive position and continue his work for the company as a board member. Verkkokauppa.com's Board of Directors has decided to appoint Panu Porkka as the company's new CEO.
Porkka, who currently serves as the CEO of Suomalainen Kirjakauppa Oy, is expected to take on his new position by April 2018. Samuli Seppälä will continue to serve as the CEO through the transition period. Seppälä is the largest shareholder of Verkkokauppa.com with a shareholding of 49.9% and will continue his work for the company as a member of Verkkokauppa.com's Board of Directors also after the CEO change.
Founder of Verkkokauppa.com, Samuli Seppälä has led the company since its establishment in 1992. In 25 years, Seppälä has led the company from a small e-commerce site to Finland's largest online store and a First North listed retail success.
"Together with my staff, we have guided the company through the stages of digitalization, harnessing the continuing online transformation of retail. Verkkokauppa.com has systematically shown strong growth figures and developed into a player with versatile product categories to meet consumers' needs and an annual revenue of around 370 million euros in 2016. I proudly look backwards, though in a way, the journey is only beginning at this point for Verkkokauppa.com. I am personally very pleased that we will have Panu Porkka as the new CEO of Verkkokauppa.com, and I have full confidence in him," Samuli Seppälä says.
Announcing Porkka's appointment, Verkkokauppa.com Chairman Christoffer Häggblom says:
"I want to thank Samuli Seppälä for his devoted work for Verkkokauppa.com so far. He has built Verkkokauppa.com from zero to the company it is today - Finland's largest and most well-known e-commerce company. At the same time, I am convinced that having both Panu Porkka and Samuli Seppälä's in the company is the combination that will lead Verkkokauppa.com to even greater things. Panu Porkka is a true professional in retail and consumer goods and I believe that Verkkokauppa.com will take the next step as a company under his leadership."
"I am honored and excited to step in Samuli Seppälä's shoes as the CEO of Verkkokauppa.com. Verkkokauppa.com is an impressive success story within the Finnish retail sector, and we will continue to execute our growth strategy and our mission to be the 'probably always cheaper' retailer for our customers. Building further on Verkkokauppa.com's success is a challenge I accept with confidence and fierce ambition," Panu Porkka concludes.
Prior to his leadership position in Suomalainen Kirjakauppa, Panu Porkka acted as Sales Director in Tokmanni, as the CEO of Waucher, and before that nearly ten years in Lidl. Porkka is a member of the Verkkokauppa.com's Board of Directors. When taking on his position as the CEO of Verkkokauppa.com in spring 2018, Porkka will resign from his position as a Board Member of Verkkokauppa.com.
Panu Porkka's CV and photo are included as attchments of this release.
PRESS CONFERENCE
A press conference for analysts, investors and media will be held in Finnish at the Jätkäsaari premises in Helsinki at Tyynenmerenkatu 11, 6th floor, at 14:00 a.m. (EET) on Wednesday, 27 September 2017. Verkkokauppa.com's Chairman of the Board Christoffer Häggblom, CEO Samuli Seppälä and Panu Porkka will be present in the press conference.
A press conference in English will be held by LiveStream webcast on Wednesday, 27 September 2017 at 14:00 a.m. (EET). Questions can be sent beforehand or during the presentation via e-mail to investors@verkkokauppa.com.
Presentation materials for both events are available at www.verkkokauppa.com in the section Investors > Presentations. For both press conferences, a LiveStream is available at www.verklive.com.
Helsinki, Finland, 27 September 2017
Verkkokauppa.com Oyj
Board of Directors
More information:
Samuli Seppälä, CEO
e-mail samuli.seppala@verkkokauppa.com
Telephone +358 10 309 5555
Jussi Tallgren, CFO
e-mail jussi.tallgren@verkkokauppa.com
Telephone +358 10 309 5555
Certified Adviser Nordea Bank Finland Plc
Telephone +358 9 5300 6785
Distribution:
NASDAQ Helsinki
Key media
www.verkkokauppa.com
