Roche Bobois: A 5.6% Decline in Q1, but March Marks a Turning Point
The high-end furniture group Roche Bobois reported a revenue of 87.1 million euros in the first quarter of 2026, down by 5.6% at constant exchange rates compared to the same period in 2025. Despite this downturn in a challenging economic context, the group observed signs of recovery starting in March, particularly in the United States and China, while its order book showed growth compared to the end of December 2025.
Q1 2026 Financial Performance
The revenue for the first quarter of 2026 amounted to 87.1 million euros, down from 95.2 million euros a year earlier. At constant exchange rates, the decline stands at 5.6%; the additional 3-point gap is attributable to Euro/Dollar exchange movements. This decrease aligns with the activity in the fourth quarter of 2025 and the less favorable macroeconomic environment. Regional performances remain mixed: Roche Bobois France reported a decrease of 5.7% to 26.2 million euros, while Cuir Center, positioned in the mid-range segment, recorded a growth of 13.0% to 10.7 million euros. In the United States and Canada, at constant exchange rates, the decline was very limited (-0.8%), with a nominal decline of 10.0% almost exclusively due to exchange rate effects. Conversely, Europe outside of France experienced a more significant contraction, with revenue falling 16.2% to 19.0 million euros.
March Shows Signs of Recovery
While the quarter overall shows a contraction, the month of March reveals a reversal in the trend for order intake. The business volume of owned stores turned positive in March with a growth of 1.1%, after declines in February and January. This improvement is based on distinct regional performances: the US/Canada zone experienced strong growth of 28.3% in March alone thanks to the success of the Design Days sales event, while China recorded a progression of 53.7%. Over the entire quarter, Cuir Center's owned stores progressed by 5.0% and the owned stores in China showed a growth of 36.0%. In total, the business volume of owned stores reached 97.2 million euros, down 7.7% at constant exchange rates. The overall business volume, including franchisees, amounted to 155.1 million euros with a decline of the same order at constant exchange rates.
Order Book and Outlook
The order book at the end of March 2026 reached 139.2 million euros, up by 16.5 million euros compared to 122.7 million euros as of December 31, 2025. This recovery contrasts with the level of 161.1 million euros recorded at the end of March 2025, reflecting an annual decline of 22 million euros. It is worth noting that this order book was impacted by an unfavorable exchange effect of 6.2 million euros. The group anticipates that the revenue for the second quarter will follow a trend similar to the first quarter, while benefiting from more favorable expected exchange effects. Roche Bobois emphasizes the resilience of its variable cost business model, which helps to mitigate the impacts of volume contractions. The group has historically experienced recovery phases following downturns. For investors, the central challenge remains the group's ability to convert the positive signals observed in March into sustained improvement in its revenue over the coming quarters.
