What is a normal operating margin in wholesale of clothing and footwear?

The median operating margin was 3.2 %, meaning what was left of revenue once every cost had been paid. Half of the 46 companies in the sample were above it, and half below.

What separates the best from the weakest in wholesale of clothing and footwear?

The top third had an operating margin of 7.9 %, against -3.5 % for the weakest. The spread is 11 percentage points, within the same industry, the same country and the same year.

How many companies are there in wholesale of clothing and footwear in Norway?

We hold filed accounts for 46 Norwegian companies on this industry code with at least one million kroner in revenue. The real number is higher, since dormant and very small companies are excluded.

How much revenue does a company in Wholesale of clothing and footwear generate per employee?

The median company in Wholesale of clothing and footwear turns over NOK 3m per employee. The figure is calculated on the 45 of 46 companies that report an employee count.

How many are loss-making in wholesale of clothing and footwear?

24 % of the companies in the sample posted a negative operating result.

How large is a typical company in wholesale of clothing and footwear?

Median revenue is NOK 105.6m. Half of the companies fall between NOK 51.2m and NOK 200.1m.

How much do public contracts matter in wholesale of clothing and footwear?

14 of 46 companies, that is 30.4 %, have won at least one public contract since 2022. They have median revenue of NOK 50m, against NOK 142.5m for the rest.

NACE 46.420

Margins and profitability in wholesale of clothing and footwear

46 Norwegian companies in this industry. The median operating margin was 3.2 %, meaning what was left of revenue once every cost had been paid.

24 % of the companies in this industry posted a negative operating result that year.

In kroner

Revenue and operating profit

Revenue and operating profit
	Median company	Top third
Revenue	NOK 105,558,547	NOK 164,264,573
Operating profit	NOK 2,528,301	NOK 12,817,625
Revenue per employee	NOK 3,015,802	NOK 6,859,610

Revenue per employee is calculated on the 45 of 46 companies that report an employee count, as the median of the ratio within each company.

Median, not mean. A mean would be pulled up by the largest companies in the industry, and would say little about a typical one.

The distribution

What companies in the industry earned

One tenth of companies fell below -10.0 %, and one tenth above 8.9 %. That is the real spread in the industry, not an average.

Top against weakest third

Top third: 7.9 %
Weakest third: -3.5 %
Spread: 11 percentage points
Equity ratio: 46.4 %median of 46

Size

Profitability by size

Profitability by size
Revenue	Companies	Median operating margin
20 to 100 m	18	1.6 %
over 100 m	24	4.6 %

Companies are split into revenue bands, with the median margin in each. Bands with fewer than ten companies are omitted, because the median becomes too unstable to show.

Geography

Where the companies are based

Where the companies are based
Oslo		12
Lillesand		2
Kristiansand S		2
Lysaker		2
Moss		2
Oltedal		1

The six postal towns with the most companies in this industry, by registered business address.

Public contracts

Who in the industry wins public contracts

14 of 46 companies in the industry have won at least one public contract since 2022, that is 30.4 %.

Those that win have median revenue of NOK 50m, against NOK 142.5m for those that do not. That is 0.4× as much. It describes who wins, not evidence that contracts make companies large; large companies also find it easier to bid.

Who puts them out to tender

The 54 contracts we find come most often from these buyers.

Who puts them out to tender
Politiets fellestjenester		8
Direktoratet for samfunnssikkerhet og beredskap (DSB)		5
Ullensvang kommune		4
Forsvarsmateriell		4
Skatteetaten		4

Contracts come from Doffin and TED. Our collection is not complete, and TED covers only contracts above the EEA threshold, so the figures are a floor and not a full count. We say what we find, not what exists.

Questions and answers

Common questions about wholesale of clothing and footwear

What is a normal operating margin in wholesale of clothing and footwear?: The median operating margin was 3.2 %, meaning what was left of revenue once every cost had been paid. Half of the 46 companies in the sample were above it, and half below.
What separates the best from the weakest in wholesale of clothing and footwear?: The top third had an operating margin of 7.9 %, against -3.5 % for the weakest. The spread is 11 percentage points, within the same industry, the same country and the same year.
How many companies are there in wholesale of clothing and footwear in Norway?: We hold filed accounts for 46 Norwegian companies on this industry code with at least one million kroner in revenue. The real number is higher, since dormant and very small companies are excluded.
How much revenue does a company in Wholesale of clothing and footwear generate per employee?: The median company in Wholesale of clothing and footwear turns over NOK 3m per employee. The figure is calculated on the 45 of 46 companies that report an employee count.
How many are loss-making in wholesale of clothing and footwear?: 24 % of the companies in the sample posted a negative operating result.
How large is a typical company in wholesale of clothing and footwear?: Median revenue is NOK 105.6m. Half of the companies fall between NOK 51.2m and NOK 200.1m.
How much do public contracts matter in wholesale of clothing and footwear?: 14 of 46 companies, that is 30.4 %, have won at least one public contract since 2022. They have median revenue of NOK 50m, against NOK 142.5m for the rest.

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