Mister Spex SE, one of Germany's leading omnichannel optical retailers, reported Group revenue of €133.6 million for the first nine months of 2026, an 8% decline year-on-year, as weak consumer sentiment continued to weigh on the online segment. The company confirmed its full-year revenue and adjusted EBITDA margin guidance whilst revising its year-end cash position to €21–23 million, down from a previous range of €25–30 million, reflecting accelerated operational transition costs. Investors will be watching whether the narrowing revenue decline in Q3 — to 4% from 8% over nine months — signals a meaningful stabilisation trend ahead of the company's first Salesforce platform launch at the end of 2026.

Key Points

  • Mister Spex SE (0A9V), one of Germany's leading optical retailers operating 66 stores and serving over 8 million customers
  • Group revenue of €133.6 million in the first nine months of 2026, down 8% year-on-year; Q3 revenue of €45.7 million, down 4%
  • Adjusted EBITDA of €5.7 million for nine months (vs €4.5 million prior year); year-end cash guidance revised to €21–23 million
  • Investors should watch the Swedish webshop Salesforce launch and whether offline growth can offset continued online weakness

Offline Revenue Rises 8% in Nine Months as New Berlin and Hamburg Stores and Six Acquired Opticians Drive Growth

Mister Spex's physical store network delivered offline revenue of €53.7 million in the first nine months of 2026, an increase of 8% year-on-year, with Q3 offline revenue up 4%. Growth was supported by new store openings in Berlin and Hamburg and the integration of six acquired independent opticians. The company's subscription offering, Mister Spex Switch, contributed meaningfully, accounting for approximately 16% of offline revenue in Q3. The average order value of a Switch subscription was approximately 2.2 times that of comparable non-subscription purchases, and 42% of subscriptions were taken out by new customers, indicating the model's potential for customer acquisition as well as retention.

Online Segment Revenue Falls 16% Over Nine Months, Though Q3 Decline Narrows to 8% as Contact Lenses Stabilise

The online segment remained under pressure, with revenue declining 16% to €79.9 million over nine months. Prescription glasses were the most affected category, falling 19% online. However, Q3 showed some improvement, with the online decline narrowing to 8% year-on-year, and sunglasses and contact lenses broadly holding at prior-year levels. Online adjusted EBITDA improved substantially, reaching €5.2 million in nine months compared with €1.6 million in the same period of 2025, suggesting that cost discipline is partly offsetting revenue pressure. Active customers across the Group fell 16% to approximately 1.01 million, while average order value rose 7% to €119.

Arvato Takes Over Logistics and Rodenstock Assumes Prescription Manufacturing in Asset-Light Restructuring

A central strand of Mister Spex's strategic repositioning is the transfer of core operational processes to external partners. Arvato has fully assumed logistics operations, encompassing warehousing, shipping and returns, while Rodenstock now manufactures finished prescription glasses and prescription sunglasses. The announcement states that the Berlin-Spandau logistics site closed earlier than planned, contributing to the downward revision of the year-end cash forecast. In parallel, Mister Spex has accelerated the rollout of Salesforce to cover marketing and customer service — functions originally planned for a later stage — with the Swedish webshop scheduled as the first to go live on the new platform by the end of 2026.

Full-Year Revenue and Adjusted EBITDA Margin Guidance Confirmed Despite Revised Cash Position

Mister Spex confirmed it continues to expect 2026 full-year revenue to develop between 0% and -10% relative to the 2025 financial year, and that adjusted EBITDA margin will reach break-even to the mid-single-digit percentage range. The year-end cash and cash equivalents guidance has been revised to €21–23 million from the previous range of €25–30 million, a change the company attributes to the accelerated logistics site closure and the brought-forward Salesforce integration spend. The broader German optical retail market remains difficult, with the German Association of Opticians and Optometrists reporting a 2.9% revenue decline and a 6.5% drop in unit sales among participating businesses over the same nine-month period.