14 June 2016
NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, IN, INTO OR FROM ANY
JURISDICTION WHERE TO DO SO WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OF
SUCH JURISDICTION
PREMIER FARNELL TRADING UPDATE FOR FIRST QUARTER OF THE FINANCIAL YEAR ENDING 29 JANUARY 2017
The Board of Premier Farnell has announced today that it has reached agreement with the Board of Datwyler
Holding Inc on the terms of a recommended offer by a wholly-owned subsidiary of Datwyler to acquire the
entire issued and to be issued share capital of Premier Farnell. The statement is available at
www.premierfarnell.com.
Trading performance Continuing Operations (c) (excludes Akron Brass) for period 1 February 2016 to 1 May
2016 (Q1 2016/17):
Sales growth(a)
Europe
Americas
APAC
element14
CPC/MCM
Continuing Operations
Excluding Raspberry Pi
Q1 2016/17(b)
1.5%
(9.9%)
25.7%
(0.9%)
(4.5%)
(1.4%)
(2.6%)

Revenue Q1 2016/17 £247.2 million (Q1 2015/16: £240.5 million), reflecting operational trends above and
foreign exchange effects.
 element14 sales per day (SPD) year on year growth of 1.5% in Europe, with UK SPD decline of 7.2% and
Continental Europe SPD growth of 4.8% year on year.
 Americas SPD decline of 9.0% year on year excluding Brazil (operations discontinued in 2015), with SPD
decline of 9.9% year on year including Brazil, reflecting a weakening in US manufacturing conditions and
competitive pressures.
 Strong growth in Asia Pacific, with 25.7% SPD growth year on year, due to strong SPD growth in China of
24.9% year on year and India of 26.4% year on year.
 CPC/MCM SPD declined 4.5% year on year, due in part to actions taken in Q1 2016/17 by competitors in the
UK.
Operational and financial momentum:
 Sale of Akron Brass was completed on 16 March 2016, with proceeds deployed to redeem:
o Preferred shares fully redeemed 29 April 2016 for net cost of £53.5m.
o $50m of private placement notes repurchased on 5 May 2016.
 On track to deliver expected annualised costs savings of £19m 2017/18.
 US sales reorganisation undertaken in May 2016 in order to deliver operational efficiencies.
Jos Opdeweegh, Chief Executive Officer, commented:
“The sales trends of 2015/16 continued into the first quarter of this financial year, with strength in Continental
Europe and Asia Pacific and difficult trading conditions in North America and UK. We remain on track to make
progress in this financial year, as we increase our operational efficiency and relevance to customers, and we
implement the outcomes of our operational review.
“I am pleased we have reached an agreement with Datwyler Holding Inc on the terms of a recommended offer
for Premier Farnell. I believe the combination of the two companies represents a strong strategic fit and is highly
attractive for customers, shareholders and colleagues.”
Board Change
Following the appointment of Jos Opdeweegh as Chief Executive in March this year, Mark Whiteling agreed to
remain with the Company as Deputy CEO to provide continuity for the Company and support for Jos. Having
fulfilled this role to a high standard, and in light of today’s announcement of the recommended offer for the
Company, it has been agreed that Mark will step down from the Board and leave the Company following today’s
AGM, as there will be no Deputy CEO role in the enlarged group.
Mark has made a significant contribution to the Company, both in his role as Chief Financial Officer, and also in
the critical period from August 2015 to April 2016 as Interim Chief Executive Officer, during which time the
operational review and sale of Akron Brass were completed, and the senior executive team strengthened
considerably.
There will not be a conference call or webcast in conjunction with this trading update.
For further information, contact:
Jos Opdeweegh, Chief Executive Officer
Helen Willis, Interim Chief Financial Officer
Paul Sharma, Investor Relations
Premier Farnell plc
+44 (0) 20 7851 4107
Richard Mountain/Andrew Lorenz
FTI Consulting
+44 (0) 20 3727 1374
Premier Farnell’s announcements and presentations are published at www.premierfarnell.com together with
business information and links to all other Group web sites.
(a) Throughout this statement, in order to reflect underlying business performance, sales growth is based on sales per day
for continuing operations at constant exchange rates, unless otherwise stated.
(b) Financial year 2016/2017 ending 29 January 2017.
(c) Akron Brass sale completed 16 March 2016 and is viewed as a discontinued operation.
For reference, in the first quarter, the average exchange rates for sterling against the US dollar and the Euro
were, respectively, £1 = US$1.43 (Q1 2015/16: £1 = US$1.52) and £1 = €1.27 (Q1 2015/16: £1 = €1.37).
Financial year 2015/16 performance(d)
Sales growth 2015/16(a)
Europe
Americas
APAC
element14
CPC/MCM
Continuing Operations
Excluding Raspberry Pi
Q1
5.9%
2.2%
16.2%
5.3%
13.9%
6.3%
2.6%
Q2
1.6%
(0.8%)
8.2%
1.2%
(1.9%)
0.8%
0.0%
Q3
(0.5%)
(6.9%)
14.9%
(1.9%)
7.7%
(0.6%)
(3.7%)
Q4
1.1%
(5.1%)
19.4%
0.3%
1.0%
0.4%
(2.0%)
FY
2.1%
(2.6%)
14.6%
1.2%
5.0%
1.7%
(0.8%)
(d) Based on constant exchange rates, as per the FY 2015/16 statement of 17 March 2016.
This release contains certain forward-looking statements relating to the business of the Group and certain of its plans and
objectives, including, but not limited to, future capital expenditures, future ordinary expenditures and future actions to be
taken by the Group in connection with such capital and ordinary expenditures, the expected benefits and future actions to
be taken by the Group in respect of certain sales and marketing initiatives, operating efficiencies and economies of scale.
By their nature forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to events and depend on
circumstances that will occur in the future. Actual expenditures made and actions taken may differ materially from the
Group’s expectations contained in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, many of which are
beyond the control of the Group. These factors include, but are not limited to, the implementation of initiatives supporting
the Group’s strategy, the effect of legislation and regulatory enactments, recruitment and integration of new personnel,
the implementation of cost saving initiatives, continued use and acceptance of e-commerce programs and systems,
implementation of new IT systems, the ability to expand into new markets and territories, the implementation of new
sales and marketing initiatives, changes in demand for electronic, electrical, electromagnetic and industrial products,
rapid changes in distribution of products and customer expectations, the ability to introduce and customers’ acceptance
of new services, products and product lines, product availability, the impact of competitive pricing, fluctuations in foreign
currencies, and changes in interest rates and overall market conditions, particularly the impact of changes in worldwide
and national economies. The Group does not intend to update the forward-looking statements made herein.