Message from the co-CEOs

2021 was a rebound year for JCDecaux. We returned to our pre-Covid momentum. Although we are only halfway to restoring pre-crisis performance levels, business picked up month after month as health measures were gradually eased and travel resumed.

There has been a huge amount of effort behind our revenue achievement, made during and since the crisis by JCDecaux’s biggest asset, its employees, to step change the Group’s transformation at a time of transition. The many awards won by our teams throughout the world are a testament to their commitment and excellence. We would like to thank them again for their unfailing application, their agility and their spirit of innovation.

After a record year in 2019 followed by the most difficult year in the history of JCDecaux in 2020, our 2021 revenue rose by +18.7%, driven by sharp growth in our digital activities.

All geographies performed strongly over the year, especially during the fourth quarter despite the emergence of Omicron and mobility restrictions in some countries. Revenue in Europe (including France and the UK) was the closest to 2019 levels thanks to the Street Furniture division. For Transport, businesses exposed to domestic audiences recovered well as revenues were close to pre-Covid levels for domestic transport advertising revenue. In China revenues generated by our domestic transport activities (metros, buses, and domestic airport terminals) are already above 2019 revenue levels. Finally, Billboard advertising successfully pursued its rationalisation and digitisation strategy, particularly in the UK.

Digital-out-of-home (DOOH) revenue rose sharply in 2021 (+33.2%) reaching a record 26.9% of Group revenue. We are the most digitised outdoor advertising company worldwide, and we continued this year to accelerate our digital transformation by rolling out new digital screens, developing our automated planning platform and our audience sales solutions using qualitative data, strengthened by the launch in September of our global and local data solutions: JCDecaux Data Solutions. Programmatic
advertising gained very strong momentum via the VIOOH platform, which is now trading in 15 countries, connected to multiple DSPs (Demand Side Platforms).

Our client portfolio is diversified, and the most future facing and buoyant economic sectors continued their advertising investment strategies on our media. The Internet category surged almost +70% over the year while Fashion, Personal Care and Luxury Goods is now the biggest category, ahead of Retail.

Our business also recorded significant contract wins especially Street Furniture in Brussels (15 years) and Antwerp (10 years), previously owned by Clear Channel, as well as the renewal of the contract in Strasbourg (11 years) and the iconic win of Sydney Trains (10 years). All these contracts include a digital component, which is proof of the growing interest cities and transport operators have in the advertising capabilities provided by digital screens.

Further strict cost control measures as well as rent reductions helped ease the impacts of the crisis. We strengthened our cash position and improved our financial flexibility due to very positive free cash flow again this year, and the issue in January 2022 of a €500 million bond with a maturity in 2030 subscribed more than three times and placed with high quality investors.

Future growth will also involve external growth. In September 2021, we completed the delisting of Clear Media with a consortium of investors. Initiated by the buyout of a minority stake in Clear Media Limited in 2020, the transaction is an important stage in JCDecaux’ strategy to increase its presence in the key market of China, especially in the Street Furniture segment. In France, Abri Services, specialising in Street Furniture in the Grand Ouest region of France, whose acquisition was announced at the end of 2020, was successfully merged and has been an integral part of JCDecaux since May 2021.

We continued to strengthen our ESG initiatives which are the focus of our business model and innovation policy, especially with the launch of our 2030 Strategy, respecting our Global Compact commitment. JCDecaux is now the only company in the outdoor advertising sector to be recognised by four international players in extra-financial rating: CDP (A List), FTSE4Good (4,2/5), MSCI (AAA) and EcoVadis (Gold category). France is a precursor in the ramp-up of our Climate strategy in our various geographies through major initiatives such as the contribution to carbon neutrality for its business scope as of 2021, and the launch of the first environmental, economic, and social footprint calculator for its advertising campaigns. Finally, we set ourselves another ambitious and realistic target to increase the number of women on our Executive Management Committees to 40% at the group level by 2027 (33% to date).

We activated all the levers available to ride out the pandemic: digital transformation, reduction of our cost base, optimisation of our resources, ecological commitment, and social utility. Innovation, agility, operating excellence, and responsibility remain the essence of our corporate culture.

The digital revolution underway is made up of opportunities but also challenges. In this environment, Outdoor Advertising is the only structurally growing traditional media and it is also the most trusted partner for citizens and advertisers alike, as platforms and social networks are strongly questioned about their use of data or their environmental footprint. This is a clear advantage for our media and a powerful asset for our Group.

The industry fundamentals at the heart of our growth are stronger than ever: urbanisation, the high quality of our media, digitisation, and the structural increase in mobility. We are confident, more than ever, in the power of our media in an advertising landscape which is increasingly fragmented and increasingly digital and the role we will play supporting economic recovery as well as driving positive change in our society.

Our sales momentum remains encouraging at the beginning of 2022 despite the dramatic events in Ukraine and their potential impact on the global economy. Facing the disastrous humanitarian consequences of this war, the Executive Board, along with our local partner, acted in solidarity with the Ukrainian people and our local staff. Importantly JCDecaux has no exposure in Russia since the sale of our 25% stake in Russ Outdoor in 2020.

We would like to take the opportunity to thank all our shareholders for the trust you have placed in JCDecaux since our IPO in June 2001.