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Fourlis Group Delivers Robust Growth In 2025 Amid Expanding Retail Footprint

by THEFUTURE.TEAM

November 26, 2025

Fourlis Group has reported a notable surge in sales and profitability for the first nine months of 2025, driven by the continued expansion of its IKEA, Intersport, and Foot Locker networks across Greece, Cyprus, and Romania. The consolidated results underscore the company’s disciplined strategy and robust operating performance.

Impressive Financial Results

The latest financials display a marked increase in revenue to €430.7 million from €390 million the previous year. Gross profit rose to €200.7 million compared to €180.2 million in 2024, while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) increased to €53.7 million, resulting in a margin of 12.5 percent.

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Furthermore, Earnings Before Interest and Taxes (EBIT) climbed to €30.6 million from €21.9 million, and net profit nearly doubled to €13 million, up from €7.5 million, driven by enhanced operating productivity and stronger contributions from associates.

Dominance of The IKEA Division

The IKEA division remains the largest revenue contributor with sales reaching €170.4 million, marking a 5.1 percent year-on-year increase. Gross profit for the division advanced to €73.4 million, while segment EBIT expanded to €12 million from €8.2 million, buoyed by new store openings and sustained customer demand.

Sports Retail and Health Segments Surge

The sports retail segment, which includes Intersport and Foot Locker, delivered significant growth. Sales increased to €157.7 million from €130.7 million, with EBITDA rising to €14.3 million and EBIT improvement from €2.3 million to €4.3 million. Similarly, the Holland & Barrett health and wellness segment experienced growth with revenue climbing to €24 million from €19.3 million, and an increase in gross profit to €17.2 million, supported by an EBITDA of €1.5 million.

Strategic Investment And Regional Expansion

Fourlis Group maintained a high level of investment activity during the period. Total capital expenditures reached €106.6 million, which included €63.8 million allocated for property via Trade Estates, €27.6 million for digital transformation initiatives, and €10.1 million towards expanding store footprints across its key retail brands. Although the majority of operations are centered in Greece and Romania, Fourlis continues to solidify its strategic presence in Cyprus, operating the IKEA store in Nicosia, a Pick-Up & Order Point in Limassol, and complementing these with the Cyprus e-shop and various sports retail outlets.

For further details, please visit the official Fourlis website.

Resilience In The Face Of Cyber Challenges

While the Cyprus operations experienced a temporary disruption due to a ransomware cyberattack last year, affecting online services including the e-commerce platform, the company confirmed that no personal data was compromised and that online operations were gradually restored. Despite this challenge, Fourlis remains committed to its growth trajectory for 2025.

Looking Ahead

Analysts observe that Greek retailers are strategically expanding across the Cypriot market, reshaping the local landscape in home furnishings, sportswear, and consumer goods. With an EBITDA-adjusted figure of €57.5 million signaling improved operating performance, Fourlis Group anticipates stable growth for the remainder of 2025, underpinned by ongoing network expansion, resilient consumer demand, and a continued focus on investment in logistics and digital systems.

The Future Forbes Realty Global Properties

by News Editor

August 24, 2026

Courts Are Still Applying Old Copyright Rules To AI

AI companies train models on enormous amounts of published material, including books, articles and academic research. Whether using that content without authors’ permission violates copyright law remains unresolved.

Much of the debate centres on fair use, which allows copyrighted material to be used without permission in certain circumstances. Courts consider factors such as the purpose of the use, how much material was involved and its impact on the original market.

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Anthropic Case Sets An Important Precedent

A major case involving Anthropic and a group of authors provided one of the clearest rulings so far. Judge William Alsup found that using copyrighted books to train AI models was lawful, comparing the process to people reading and studying literature before creating something new.

Anthropic was nevertheless ordered to pay $1.5 billion in a settlement. The penalty concerned books the company had obtained from illegal online libraries rather than the AI training itself.

For AI companies, that distinction could prove significant because it separates studying copyrighted material from directly copying it.

Competition Could Be The Key Issue

A case involving Thomson Reuters and Ross Intelligence offers a different perspective. A court ruled that Ross could not claim fair use after using Reuters’ copyrighted material to develop a competing AI-powered legal research platform.

The decision suggests courts may be less willing to consider AI training fair use when copyrighted content is used to build a product that directly competes with the original.

For authors, an unresolved question is whether AI-generated content should be considered competition for the works used to train these models.

The Law Has Yet To Catch Up

US copyright law predates generative AI by decades, leaving courts to apply old principles to new technology. Questions also remain over copyright protection for AI-generated works. In Thaler v. Perlmutter, a court ruled that material created entirely by AI cannot receive copyright protection.

Major AI companies remain involved in copyright litigation, and different courts could reach different conclusions. For now, there is no universal rule: the legality of AI training will depend on the circumstances of each case and how courts ultimately interpret copyright and fair use.