ssl international plc
annual report and accounts 2008
international plc
friday
1040pm day and night all around the world people 
trust rely on and take delight in our products
our desire to anticipate and satisfy our
consumers’ needs — to become an essential 
part of daily life — is what defines ssl and 
drives our success
in brief
01 financial highlights
02 a world of brands
04 chairman’s statement
06 chief executive’s review 
09 our strategy 
business review
11 performance 
11 products
15 platform
18 people
19 purchases
21 corporate responsibility 
28 performance review
governance
33 board of directors
34 corporate governance
36 risks and uncertainties 
38 directors’ report
39 remuneration report
46 statement of directors’ 
responsibilities
financial statements
47 independent auditors’ report
48 consolidated income statement
49 consolidated balance sheet
50 consolidated statement of 
recognised income and expense
51 consolidated statement 
of cash flows 
52 notes to the consolidated 
financial statements
95 principal group undertakings 
96 company balance sheet
97 company accounting policies 
99 notes relating to the company
accounts
shareholder information
104 ssl directory
106 company information
financial calendar 01 in brief • annual report and accounts 2008
exceeding
targets
7 
sales growth
1
driven by durex 
and scholl 
£57 4m
profit before tax
3
increase of 22
£99m
net debt
4
after £38m acquisition
and oneoff cash costs
11 
operating 
profit growth
2
exceeding our double
digit percentage 
growth target
206p
earnings per share
3
increase of 20
53p 
final dividend
increase of 13 
sales 2007

08 adjusted
1
£m growth 
durex 2177 94
scholl footcare 1136 101
scholl footwear 761 100
locally owned brands 714 23
t otal branded consumer 4788 77
other 551 05
t otal sales 5339 69
1
adjusted sales growth is calculated after adjusting for currency movements and including 100 per cent of the china durex business in both years
2
adjusted operating profit growth is calculated after adjusting for currency movements including 100 per cent of the china durex business in both years
and  before oneoff restructuring charges of £413 million
3
adjusted figures are shown before oneoff restructuring and finance charges of £413 million and £52 million respectively
4
net debt is defined as financial liabilities less cash and cash equivalents see note 21 of the financial statements
financial
highlights 02
durex
durex has been making condoms of the highest quality
for nearly 80 years and continues to strengthen its position 
as the global market leader with an increasing emphasis on
sexual wellbeing the strategic development of durex has led
to an expansion of the product range to include durex play
lubricants and vibrators
— durex condoms with over 30 per cent of the global branded
condom market making it the number one condom brand 
in the world durex condoms continue to go from strength 
to strength with new product introductions such as durex
tingle and durex pleasuremax warming
— durex play lubricants designed to enhance people’s sex
lives the range is widened to include lubricants with warming
and tingling sensations fruity flavours and durex play massage
2 in 1 — a massage gel which doubles as a lubricant
— durex play vibrators a range of personal vibrators including
the new improved durex play ultra the latest vibrating ring
and durex play t ouch vibrator which are designed to help
people have happier healthier and more fulfilling sex lives
scholl footcare 
through indepth consumer insight combined with an
innovative approach to foot health and wellbeing grounded
in science and knowledge of the mechanics of the foot the
scholl footcare product range addresses five key areas of 
foot conditions to help people improve their overall comfort
and wellbeing 
— foot skin conditions eg dry hard and cracked skin 
corn callus and blister the product range includes scholl
cracked heel repair cream scholl deep moisturising
cream and scholl clear gel blister and corn plasters
— musculoskeletal conditions are those caused by inherent
malfunctions in feet and the body  eg bunions arch problems
heel pain and ball of foot pain the product range includes
scholl party feet scholl spring action insoles and scholl gel
arch support
— foot environment conditions are those caused by body
functions or activities eg odour hotcold feet and tired
aching feet the product range includes scholl odour control
foot spray scholl fresh step antiperspirant foot spray and
scholl flight socks
— virus and fungus conditions eg wartsverrucas and athletes
foot the product range includes scholl freeze verruca and
wart remover and scholl athletes foot cream
— nail conditions eg discoloured toenails a problem which 
is now addressed by the newly launched scholl nail brightening
systemperfect nail t reatment — a revolutionary new product
with a simple threestep approach to reducing discolouration
smoothing and conditioning toenails
a world 
of brands
in brief • annual report and accounts 2008 sales by geography
 1  europe 76
2  asia pacific 18
3  americas 6
2
1
3
sales by brand
 1  durex   41
2  scholl footcare 21
3  scholl footwear 14
4  locally owned 
 brands 14
5  other 10
2
1
4
3
5
03
scholl footwear
scholl footwear continues with its strategy to expand
distribution beyond its traditional heartland of pharmacy into
high street shoe retail outlets three core technologies are
used within all scholl footwear which defines the individual
collections for each distribution channel
— gelactiv all shoes in the gelactiv range have a pliable
soothing supportive gel insole inside the heel to cushion
every step
— bioprint a new improved biomechanically designed 
and proven cork footbed which is flexible and comfortable
offering the wearer better comfort improved posture and
easier walking
— exercise the exercise sandal is the original and renowned
scholl shoe its classic styling and contoured wooden foot
bed exercises and tones foot and leg muscles while you walk
locally owned brands
locally owned brands are those brands which are 
sold only in specific countries predominantly in italy 
and the uk they play an important part in achieving 
operating profit objectives by improving overall sales 
and distribution efficiencies 
— uk overthecounter otc products are sold in the 
uk to both pharmacies and grocery stores the range
includes oral analgesics such as paramol and cuprofen
headlice treatments such as full marks and paediatric
medicines such as medised
— italy mister baby offers a complete range of products
designed to meet all the most important needs of infancy
including products for feeding hygiene and play for babies
and children from 0 to 3 years 
also available in italy is sauber a range of wellbeing and
healthcare products which includes deodorants hosiery
anticellulite treatments and other body care products 04 in brief 
• annual report and accounts 2008
“we are growing sales increasing
earnings and generating cash”
gerald corbett
chairman 05
it has been another year of steady progress and good results from ssl w e have total clarity in what
we are trying to do and our executive team led by chief executive garry w atts is successfully doing it
this year has been strong as our global brands durex and scholl have benefited from innovative
new products and further investment w e have made solid progress on our european supply chain
restructuring projects and our cash flow generation has been good since march 2007 we have made
two important acquisitions firstly to further strengthen our scholl brand with orthaheel and secondly 
to expand our geographical footprint to eastern europe and the cis
underlying sales grew 69 per cent driven by growth in each of the three major categories 
durex scholl footcare and scholl footwear durex growth was underpinned by an 84 per cent growth
in branded condom sales while sales of the durex play range grew 154 per cent to £322 million scholl
footcare sales were up 10 1 per cent to £1136 million thanks in large part to strong performances 
from scholl cracked heel repair cream and our scholl pharmacy ranges in france and germany 
scholl footwear sales increased by 100 per cent to £76 1 million driven by excellent autumnwinter ’07
range sales and a solid sellin of the springsummer ’08 range
operating profit for the year before oneoff costs was £68 1 million an underlying increase of
115 per cent meeting the target of doubledigit operating profit growth in the year our operating
profit margin has increased to 128 per cent 2007 122 per cent earnings per share before oneoff
costs increased by 20 per cent to 206 pence from 17  1 pence
dividends
the board is recommending an increased final dividend of 53 pence 13 per cent ahead of last
year the total dividend for the year is 7 6 pence the final dividend will be paid on 4 september 2008
to shareholders on the register on 1 august 2008
board of directors
susan murray one of our nonexecutive directors will step down from our board following the
annual general meeting in july this year i would like to thank her for the contribution she has made
and wish her success with her future endeavours
outlook 
the new year has begun satisfactorily by increasing our investment in innovation to drive new
product development by expanding distribution into new and developing territories and with our focus
on cost control we will continue to deliver strong sales and profit growth w e remain confident of once
again achieving our doubledigit operating profit growth target
i would like to take this opportunity  on behalf of the board to thank our employees throughout all
our operations for their individual contributions in helping us achieve such success 
chairman’s 
statement
a clear 
focus on 
growth 06 in brief 
• annual report and accounts 2008
innovation
expansion
and control  07
why are you placing high emphasis on the importance of innovation 
innovation is the lifeblood of our business and is critical to driving organic sales growth it is
important that we understand what our consumers want through indepth research by combining the
expertise of our own innovation teams and working in partnership with third parties such as academic
institutions we believe we are strengthening our new product pipeline across all our brands
the durex brand has continued to perform well over the past few years how can you
continue this expansion
the launch of the durex play range in 2003 has been a key factor in developing the brand as we
move its positioning from ‘safe sex’ to sexual wellbeing this year we introduced the durex play t ouch
vibrator and durex play ultra a vibrating stimulation ring w e are also introducing a range of massage
products building on the success of durex play 2 in 1 gel with durex play 2 in 1 massage melts 
and mousse and are launching durex play o a clitoral stimulating gel to help women have more
satisfying orgasms
what new products have you developed to drive the growth of scholl footcare
scholl footcare has continued to perform well as a result of a steady flow of new innovative
products which meet people’s needs are efficacious and are well communicated to both the trade
and consumers our most recent successes include scholl cracked heel repair cream — a clinically
proven solution for repairing dry cracked skin on heels and most recently perfect nail t reatment 
or nail brightening system as it is known in the uk which treats brittle discoloured toenails perfect
nail has just been launched in a number of our markets and is supported by strong media and 
pointofsale advertising campaigns
with a growth rate of 10 per cent you appear to have turned around the scholl footwear
business how are you doing it
the steps we have taken in defining our distributionled strategy for scholl footwear in europe
have reaped rewards this has given greater clarity and focus as we expand into new high street shoe
trade channels whilst maintaining our excellent market share position in the traditional pharmacy
sector we have improved upon our existing footbed technology with bioprint and ensured we have
clear range differentiation for each of our distribution channels
what benefits do you expect from the manufacturing restructuring you have undertaken 
this year
closure of any operation is always a difficult decision however by closing the durex condom
factory in spain and transferring production to our other facilities in the asia pacific region we expect
to improve margins from 200809 onwards as the result of lower labour costs by consolidating
chief 
executive’s
review
sales
0708
0607
0506
at constant exchange rates and including 100 of the china 
business in all three years
£5339m
£4993m
£4616m
operating profit
0708
0607
0506
at constant exchange rates  including 100 of the china business 
in all three years and before oneoff restructuring charges
£68 1m
£61 1m
£523m 08 in brief 
• annual report and accounts 2008
pharmaceutical manufacture into a single inhouse supply point we can eliminate duplicated
activities and reduce transport costs
since you acquired the remaining share of the business in china last year you appear 
to be investing further  how does this support your growth plans
as we all know the expanding economy in china represents a huge opportunity particularly as
consumers in the major towns and cities become wealthier and desire premium global brands we
already have a solid base for durex in china and this year we have seen sales there grow by 35 per cent
establishing and widening our distribution platform to build upon our successes with durex and
developing our scholl business is key for growth in addition we are investing around £20 million in the
construction of a stateoftheart condom facility which will be an important point of supply for 
the domestic and global markets
y ou have started your acquisition trail what will this bring and what is next
we now have the resources to make acquisitions to grow our business — a strong balance 
sheet and a talented management team who are well capable of integrating new businesses into 
our existing infrastructure the key is to make acquisitions that complement our current distribution
channels and sales and marketing structure and also create a diversity to develop our business —
whether this is through new geographies or new products and technologies in november 2007 
we acquired orthaheel a range of orthotic insoles which alter foot alignment to provide greater
cushioning and support for feet — a great fit with our existing scholl footcare range and which brings
new technologies into our business more recently we have made a small but important investment 
in eastern europe and the cis in may we completed the acquisition of 155 per cent of a company
which owns and distributes the contex condom brand and we have options to buy the remaining
shares over the next two years meanwhile we continue to review other acquisition opportunities and
evaluate these against our stringent criteria to ensure we are making the right investment decisions
how are you looking to provide development opportunities for your employees
without the enthusiasm commitment and hard work of our employees across all our operations
we would not be seeing the success that we have achieved over the past few years i would like to take
this opportunity to thank them for their contribution to delivering our business growth it is important
that we invest in their continuing professional and personal development by offering a wide range of
training courses covering technical and lifestyle skills and enhancing business awareness also we seek
to provide new experiences such as through our partnership with students partnership worldwide 
“w e have the resources to make
acquisitions to grow our business 
— a strong balance sheet and a
talented management team”
garry watts
chief executive  09
ssl ’s strategy and values underpin business performance we aim to exploit the economic 
potential of both our brand portfolio and our global operating assets by focusing on
— consumer insightled innovation the desire and drive for innovation is central to ssl ’s growth
strategy and we recognise that the ability to innovate successfully on a longterm basis will drive
growth in the future
— cutting edge advertising supporting the launch of new products by investing in effective and
targeted marketing and advertising is a key part of the success of our brands by raising consumer
awareness and helping drive retail distribution
— efficient business practices improving business processes throughout all areas of the business 
will help ensure we are meeting the needs of our customers whilst controlling costs
— t raining and development of our people ssl ’s employees are one of our greatest assets 
and through continued development programmes we aim to strengthen the expertise across 
our business
our values
we are committed to our vision that ssl should become and remain successful socially
responsible and lively through the application of our abc operating principles attitude — behaviour 
— culture our abc operating principles outline ways of working adopted throughout our whole
organisation which will help us achieve our business objectives and our vision for ssl
our financial objective
t o achieve doubledigit operating profit growth by continuing to drive brand contribution 
in each of the three years to march 2009 whilst controlling overhead expenditure we have exceeded
this target in the first two years and are confident that we can do so again in 200809
our
strategy
 brand contribution is 
defined as sales less cost of
sales market development
expenditure and variable
selling costs 10 business review 
• annual report and accounts 2008
saturday
123pm
the gel technology in every scholl gelactiv
sandal improves comfort whilst walking 
every taste is catered for as the collection
offers a wide variety of styles and colours 11
— performance superior performance is an outcome of the four key pillars that contribute to 
building our business
— products emphasising the need for innovation — wellmanaged launches of new products
supported by consumer communication through media and point of sale 
—platform ensuring that our systems and processes are operating efficiently
— people investing in our employees to maximise their potential and the contribution they 
make to the business
— purchases acquiring new brands and businesses which are accretive to shareholder value
the performance review on page 28 sets out more information on the key growth drivers 
of ssl in 200708
innovation is synonymous with global market leadership and strong growth our links with
external development houses academic experts and medical partners combined with a strong
internal capability allows our innovation teams to develop superior quality products which in 
turn lead to sales and operating profit growth and stronger brand loyalty from our customers and
consumers increasingly ssl sources innovation from thirdparty developers and this gives us the
advantage of being flexible and agile enabling rapid delivery of new products to the marketplace 
let’s see what we have achieved this year across our global brands durex and scholl and our 
portfolio of locally owned brands…
durex
the past year has seen durex build on its position as the world’s leading expert in sexual wellbeing
and deliver on its promise to help consumers have more satisfying sex lives the brand continues 
to offer a wide product portfolio including a range of pleasureenhancing condoms lubricants and
vibrators the emphasis is on helping consumers to enjoy fulfilling sex lives irrespective of their age
gender or sexual orientation durex is spreading these key messages far and wide and today the brand
is known as much for its expertise on sexual wellbeing as it is for being the world’s leading condom
manufacturer one way it continues to do this is through the durex sexual wellbeing global survey
the second wave of which called ‘in the bedroom’ was released to the world’s media in september
2007  achieving extensive coverage across print tv  radio and the web
business
review
performance
products
superior
performance 12 business review 
• annual report and accounts 2008
global tv 
advertising campaigns
t op communicating the
range of durex condoms
lubricants and vibrators
bottom scholl nail
brightening system
the ‘in the bedroom’ wave found that while most of us wished we were having more sex and
that our sex lives lacked excitement and variety people were still having a lot of fun in the bedroom
sensual massage was highly rated by the majority of consumers while one in five said they use
vibrators the third wave of information ‘the big o’ was released in april this year and found that 
both men and women wanted to achieve more orgasms but recognised that emotions and physical
wellbeing both play a part in this it is findings such as these that help the brand develop products to
satisfy key demand areas this year has seen the introduction of the durex play t ouch vibrator durex
play ultra a vibrating stimulation ring and the very cherry lubricant designed to enhance and add a
dash of fruitiness to lovemaking
this year durex also started to roll out a new generation of significantly thinner latex condoms
meeting international quality standards fetherlite ultima launched in hong kong in june last year
and t aiwan and australia in september forms part of a new generation of ‘barely there’ condoms and
is 25 per cent thinner than standard durex condoms it was developed following market research that
showed consumers wanted as sensitive an experience as possible
scholl footcare
the vision of making scholl footcare the world’s leading foot and wellbeing brand is well on track
thanks to the brand’s philosophy of identifying and delivering on consumer needs scholl footcare
continues to enjoy strong and sustained business growth
innovation has played a major part in this success what does this involve the brand has set
about really getting to know and understand its consumers — who they are what they think and 
what they want from scholl footcare products armed with this knowledge new products have been
researched and developed to satisfy consumer demand we have then communicated all of this 
to our customers to ensure they know we lead the way in identifying and satisfying their needs as a
result business across the five brand categories — foot skin musculoskeletal foot environment virus
and fungus and toenail — has been strong in particular scholl cracked heel repair cream which 
is clinically proven to soothe and rehydrate cracked heels within seven days — continues to perform
strongly  while scholl party f eet starlight gel cushions proved popular when they were launched in
september last year
a new jewel in the footcare category crown though is the recently launched scholl nail
brightening systemperfect nail t reatment a revolutionary threeinone product that covers and
treats unsightly and discoloured toenails based on consumer insight this is a genuine first for the
market it has been researched and developed using all of the scientific knowhow consumers have
come to expect from scholl put simply it’s a perfect example of how scholl continues to benefit
consumers and help them improve their wellbeing 13
we are collaborating with the school of health care professions at the university of salford 
to enhance the brand reputation of scholl build greater understanding knowledge and expertise with
internal and external stakeholder groups and drive development of innovative new products founded
on credible science and research
scholl footwear
over the past two years our scholl footwear business in europe which represents 83 per cent of
total footwear sales has undergone radical change as it looks to develop its distributionled strategy 
by increasing retail distribution beyond its traditional pharmacy channel into new growth opportunities
in the mainstream shoe trade the pharmacy channel is traditionally the heartland for scholl footwear
in europe where consumers are typically looking to buy a ‘problemsolving’ product to provide them
with relief from discomfort in this instance the technology combined with a pleasing style is more
important than alignment with the latest fashion trends in developing new distribution channels 
it is essential to ensure that whatever steps are taken do not compromise the growth of the pharmacy
channel — the key to achieving this is clear range differentiation 
diversification of distribution outside of the pharmacy channel began last year with the launch 
of the scholl by dolcini range in partnership with leading designer diego dolcini scholl presented 
a premium collection primarily based around the classic scholl ‘exercise’ style available in selected
department stores and high street retail outlets worldwide f or the first time scholl has been positioned
as a luxury footwear brand with a high image and style this year we have extended our range to
include an autumnwinter collection and plan to incorporate the bioprint and gelactiv technologies
in future collections
we are currently in the process of developing a new collection specifically targeted at medium
priced high street shoe retailers the collection for the shoe trade will be based around the core scholl
footbed technology — cork wood and gel — but there will be a clear differentiation of style look and 
feel although focused at a younger consumer than the pharmacy range the shoe trade collection 
will remain true to the scholl heritage combining comfort with style this collection will be available 
in autumnwinter 2009 and will feature in footwear exhibitions in august 2008 
locally owned brands
locally owned brands are important in supplementing the business’s offering in specific countries
whether full marks and medised in the uk or mister baby and sauber in italy these products are
important in ensuring ssl ’s portfolio has a diverse base and extensive consumer reach there have
been notable achievements by some of these brands over the past 12 months in italy sales of mister
baby have been transformed with a 30 per cent growth over the period justifying the move into specialist
mother and baby stores and mass market chains as well as sales in italian pharmacies in the uk ssl ’s
range of overthecounter products including oral analgesics such as paramol headlice treatments
including full marks and paediatric medicines such as medised have all made a significant contribution
to sales and profitability
poster advertising for 
bioprint ‘giacosta’ — improved
footbed technology in the
scholl footwear range 14 business review 
• annual report and accounts 2008
sunday
1034am
durex play range of lubricants are designed 
to enhance pleasure giving a more sensual
experience for both partners available in a 
range of sensations and flavours — original 
tingle heat and the latest addition very cherry
which tastes sweet and deliciously fruity 15
platform
an artist’s impression of the
new stateoftheart condom
factory in qingdao china —
currently under construction
factory locations
europe
peterlee uk otc products
guernsey
1
uk otc products 
redruth uk compression hosiery products
asia pacific
bangpakong thailand condoms
qingdao china condoms
pallavaram
2
india condoms
puducheri
2
india condoms
virudhunagar
2
india condoms
irungattukottai india footcare
1
expected to close by december 2008
2
joint venture
by ensuring that we have an infrastructure which supports our business strategy and objectives 
we can be confident that we have a robust platform for driving future growth over the past year we
have undertaken significant changes in our global manufacturing footprint information systems 
and in restructuring of groupwide functions
manufacturing
high levels of customer service driven by efficient supply of high quality product are an essential
part of ssl ’s success during 200708 we restructured our global manufacturing footprint for durex
and pharmaceutical products thereby allowing further improvements to our supply chain and
customer service in these areas
durex
in march of this year we closed the durex condom factory near barcelona spain to transfer
production to ssl ’s facilities in the lower cost countries of thailand and india the oneoff cost
associated with this closure was £27 1 million and we expect operating margins to benefit from 
this transfer from 200809 onwards ssl currently has a durex condom manufacturing facility in
qingdao china which manufactures condoms for the domestic china market — however reflecting
the increasing importance of china in driving both overall global economic growth and durex sales
growth we have commenced the construction of a new stateoftheart factory which will be located
near to our current factory 
the new factory  expected to cost in the region of £20 million will increase condom manufacturing
capacity in china fivefold enabling the supply of durex condoms to both the domestic and global
markets as such it will become the largest single condom factory in the group and durex lubricants
will also be manufactured there we expect that the new factory which will replace our current facility
will become operational by june 2009
pharmaceutical 
in february of this year we announced the closure of our factory on guernsey channel islands
which is expected to close by december 2008 the cost of closure is anticipated to be £95 million
production will transfer to ssl ’s pharmaceutical facility in peterlee england and to thirdparty suppliers
this consolidation will allow the elimination of duplicated activities between the two sites and allow a
focused and coordinated approach to pharmaceutical manufacture at a single inhouse supply point 16 business review 
• annual report and accounts 2008
information technology
implementing sap
further to our report last year we have continued with the implementation of sap across the
business the benefits derived from creating a single stable platf orm across all commercial manuf acturing
and warehousing units are greater efficiency shorter delivery lead times increased responsiveness
and more accurate information these benefits will result in faster decisionmaking better customer
service and improved working capital management — enhancing the platform for growth for ssl
during 200708 having implemented sap in the uk our largest commercial unit and group
functions ireland and spain we are now live in 11 european countries in line with our published
objectives in our manufacturing units sap is now fully implemented at all four factories in india and
implementation is currently under way in china which is a key element of the project for the construction
of the new factory in addition a sap procurement module is live at ssl ’s footwear development
group near milan italy which enables more effective management of the scholl footwear supply chain
our aim is to complete the implementation in china and to implement in our remaining european
commercial markets by mid2009 we expect sap implementation in the asia pacific and americas
regions will be completed by the end of 2010
w eb strategy
with an increasing percentage of the world’s population now connected and billions spent on
line each year the approach to web strategy and ecommerce is becoming increasingly important 
for all businesses and ssl is no different this year we have relaunched ssl ’s corporate website
wwwsslinternationalcom and developed for the first time wwwdurexnetworkorg which provides
information on all the activities of the durex network in the sexual and reproductive healthcare arena
most recently we have launched the new durex website wwwdurexcom in the uk and a number of 
other countries f ull rollout to over 60 countries will be completed during 200809 the emphasis is to
strengthen brand communication and further develop ecommerce as an additional route to market 
a similar development is now planned for scholl
functional restructuring 
restructuring our groupwide functions ie those roles which provide support to our operating
units worldwide to ensure that they are aligned to achieving our business objectives is another key
factor for building the platform for growth
innovation driving growth
ssl is becoming increasingly focused on innovation to drive sales growth during the year we
restructured our group marketing  innovation function into two separate streams so that we can
ensure that not only the design development and implementation of new products works efficiently
“ssl is becoming increasingly
focused on innovation to 
drive sales growth”
home page of the newly
launched wwwdurexcom
website — strengthening
brand communication 17
monday
847pm
hard brittle and thick toenails can be
unpleasant and uncomfortable scholl nail
brightening systemperfect nail t reatment is
a fastacting easy to apply remedy for healthy
conditioned comfortable nails — and helps
them look good too 18 business review 
• annual report and accounts 2008
but also that we can speed up our innovation in marketing as well further emphasising the importance
of innovation we have strengthened and consolidated our existing research and development centres
located at our manufacturing facilities in india and peterlee meanwhile closing down a small site in
cambridge and created a new technical centre at the thailand factory
global compliance
compliance with global product regulations is a vital element for business growth t o ensure 
that we are fully supporting our global business we have restructured our group regulatory function
so that it can become truly customerfocused and proactive in providing support not only to our
current product portfolio but also to our stream of new products
scholl footwear in europe
as part of developing the european scholl footwear business we have devised a new
organisational structure to ensure our strategy can be implemented effectively we aim to deliver 
our operational objectives through supply chain management quality control sales and marketing
expertise — focused on the needs of each of the heartland pharmacy sector and the developing
mainstream shoe trade channel
people
t o drive business growth we must have the right people with the right skills competencies and
potential doing the right jobs we manage our pool of talent to achieve this by providing development
opportunities through different work experiences and training programmes we can help our employees
to achieve their maximum potential and contribution to the business 
as a brandled company developing our marketing talent pool is crucial for example following an
initial european marketing course held in paris in 2006 a second workshop on ‘consumer drive and
innovation’ was held in november 2007  marketeers from across europe worked in teams to identify
breakthrough solutions to life’s problems with products that are not currently available the objective
was to foster a culture of innovation to enhance teamworking and to develop core marketing skills
across our european team the programme provided the opportunity for people from different
countries and cultures to work together a similar programme is being rolled out for our marketeers 
in asia pacific commencing in june 2008
our approach wherever possible is to promote employees from within and to facilitate this we
are in the process of implementing a systematic groupwide standard approach to succession planning
which not only recognises individual development profiles but also ensures that we have provision in
place to maintain business continuity  standardising the approach on a global basis means that we can
gain better understanding of our employees and our current business needs more information about
our training and development programmes communication and resourcing is on page 22
ssl european marketeers
during the ‘consumer drive
and innovation’ workshop 19
16
ssl ’s strategy is now focusing on organic sales growth supplemented by executing well chosen
acquisitions we have very clear criteria against which we measure opportunities to ensure that any
acquisition complements our existing business enables us to use our existing infrastructure more
effectively and drives shareholder value in both the short and medium term since march 2007 we
have made two acquisitions which have wholly met these criteria 
orthaheel
in november 2007  we acquired orthaheel a range of orthotic insoles which are inserted into
shoes to alter foot alignment and provide cushioning and support for the feet designed by leading
podiatrist philip vasyli they are proven to reduce heel and knee pain as well as improve posture 
following the acquisition scholl has an ongoing relationship with philip vasyli which enhances our
research and development capabilities and strengthens the foundation for the ongoing brand
development for scholl
currently orthaheel has geographic distribution in australia new zealand the uk and germany 
and its stateoftheart orthotic product range provides ssl with immediate turnover and a market
leadership position in the orthotics market in australia and the uk combining this with the scholl brand
and our extensive distribution network in europe and asia pacific provides an exciting opportunity 
for future growth in new geographies we are planning an initial rollout of a new cobranded range
from the second half of 2008 onwards global sales of orthaheel to the year ended 30 june 2007
were £57 million the acquisition was valued at £149 million a multiple of 26 times sales if sales targets
are achieved consideration could rise to a maximum of £343 million payable in cash by june 2010
eastern europe and the commonwealth of independent states ‘cis’
recognising the importance of emerging markets in driving future sales growth we continue to
identify opportunities where we are able to strengthen our position in markets in which we already
operate as with the increased investment in china early in 2007  or to enter into markets where we
have no or limited presence in february this year we entered into contracts to initially acquire up 
to 18 per cent of businesses which own and distribute condoms primarily the contex brand and
disposable medical products through eastern europe and the cis consisting of 11 former soviet
republics these contracts also give ssl the option to acquire in two further stages the remaining
shares in the businesses consideration for each stage is calculated on an earnout basis calculated 
at 9x ebitda stage one of the acquisition was completed on 19 may 2008 the initial investment was
£248 million for a 155 per cent share of the businesses the remaining two stages are expected to take
place before 31 may 2010
“we have very clear criteria
against which to measure
acquisition opportunities 
to drive shareholder value”
purchases 20 business review 
• annual report and accounts 2008
tuesday
204am
when children are ill you want to help make
them better quickly medised for children 
is specially formulated to ease away pain in
children from two years old and it also helps
clear blocked noses and eases breathing to
help a restful night’s sleep 21
ssl aims to operate in a way which reflects our values while understanding and responding to
stakeholder views and connecting business decisions to environmental ethical and social concerns
we have developed a new framework for our approach to corporate responsibility which is tailored to
the needs and development of ssl this will enhance awareness of our commitment in this area and
maximise the benefits being achieved by developing a coherent and coordinated approach the new
framework has four core elements ‘in the marketplace’ ‘in the workplace’ ‘in the environment’ and
‘in the community’
— in the marketplace covers the whole supply chain from selection of raw materials thirdparty
supplier assessments inhouse manufacture packaging delivery to customers and responsible
and effective communication with consumers
— in the workplace reflects the core areas of the global hr strategy — resourcing reward
communication and development — and health and safety for all employees
— in the environment refers to ssl ’s commitment to continual improvement in its practices in
environmental care review of its environmental performance and use of sustainable resources
— in the community relates to work carried out by ssl in the global national and local communities 
it includes areas such as the activities of the durex network relationships with national health
authorities local social responsibility programmes as well as ssl ’s responsibilities to shareholders
and investors
we have set five objectives for 200809 and are in the process of developing a fiveyear plan to
ensure a sustainable approach is achieved in each of these areas our objectives for 200809 are
— t raining and development continuing the expansion of the threetier training and development
programme into new countries providing more opportunities for our employees to improve their
business awareness as well as technical and personal skills
— health and safety to build upon a positive behaviourled safety culture with an initial focus on
developing new health and safety procedures at manufacturing sites
— durex network to continue to lead and participate in activities to raise awareness of hivaids
safer sex and consistent condom use
— environment increasing awareness of environmental issues by establishing expertise across 
ssl ’s operations and assessment of the full impact of ‘green consumerism’ and how it affects 
ssl ’s commercial operations
— supply chain to develop and commence implementation of a standard supplier assessment
process and code of conduct across all business categories
corporate
responsibility
expanding 
our focus 22 business review 
• annual report and accounts 2008
in the marketplace
we aim to ensure that we take care of our consumers by providing products for their use that 
are safe and effective are sourced from a supply chain that is ethical and delivered through business
practices that are legal ethical and socially responsible we have robust quality and compliance
procedures and management systems across our business which help safeguard our consumers
due to the complexity and scope of this area we are still in the process of developing and refining 
the holistic approach as stated in the objectives above our aim for 200809 is to build a platform 
to standardise the assessment process for selecting suppliers across all product categories to
encompass quality environment health and safety ethics and human rights issues 
protecting our consumers and our brands
counterfeit products erode the prestige profitability and reputation of premium brands and
protection of consumers is at the heart of our approach to dealing with this whilst stamping out
counterfeit products at source is not easy we have developed robust procedures and controls which
help identify genuine durex from counterfeits 
one such measure is the provision of specially produced information leaflets to customs officers
in the european commission to assist them in identifying the fake products however if counterfeit
products have entered a country we work closely with the regulatory agencies to take all the steps
necessary to act in the best interests of consumers in addition during 200809 we will implement 
a new advanced anticounterfeit labelling system for all scholl footwear sold in europe
reach
during 200708 we began the registration process to comply with reach registration
evaluation authorisation and restriction of chemicals as adopted by the european union under 
the terms of reach industry is required to register certain substances that are manufactured 
imported or used in europe 
in the workplace
by creating a positive and safe working environment for our employees which supports their
professional and personal development encourages open and honest communication provides
reward packages to drive behaviours that are aligned with business objectives looks to attract and
retain talent and by encouraging behaviourled safety ssl supports motivated successful people
who are passionate about our future
professional and personal development
t raining and development is an important part of attracting and motivating talented people 
we are continuing the expansion of our threetier training and development programme which 
employees by geography
 1 asia pacific   3 460
1
2 europe 1840
3 americas  50
total 5350
2 2
1
3
employees by function
 1  manufacturing 2950
1
2  commercial 2400
total 5350
2
2
1
1
includes 2000 employees at our joint ventures in india
2 
headcount as at 31 march 2008 23
wednesday
932pm
durex play ultra provides 40 minutes 
of quivering pleasure and as it is 
now waterproof  part of the fun will be
experimenting with where and which 
way to wear it for maximum stimulation 24 business review 
• annual report and accounts 2008
“we recognise and value the
importance of our employees 
and training and development 
is an important part of attracting
and motivating talented people”
covers three core areas — personal skills development business awareness and lifestyle — into new
geographical areas a specific initiative aims to foster a culture of innovation for our marketing teams
refer to page 18 for further information
we recognise and value the importance of our employees and how we treat each other in our
working environment reflecting this we launched a new programme ‘dignity at work’ to build upon
awareness of the issues affecting and resulting from our behaviour at work 
this approach to ‘dignity at work’ is fundamental in defining and developing our organisational
culture and is entirely aligned with ssl ’s vision to become and remain successful — socially responsible
— lively and our abc operating principles the objectives of the ‘dignity at work’ training programme
are to understand clearly what we mean by ‘dignity at work’ the impact of behaviours at work the
responsibilities of every employee and to provide practical guidelines in dealing with related issues 
in the workplace this programme was initially launched in the uk but the principles it espouses will
form the basis for a global employee code of conduct to be developed during 200809 
open and honest communication 
a culture of open and honest communication is key to a successful business we have 
designed our internal strategy to focus on three areas people brands and business performance 
we recognise that twoway communication is very important and welcome feedback from all our
employees we hold global employee surveys on a biannual basis our second will be held in october
2008 which will cover areas such as leadership communication satisfaction and motivation as a
brandled company we aim to ensure that all employees whatever their role or wherever they are
located have the opportunity to learn about our brands and latest products through distribution 
of posters knowledgebased factfiles briefing notes and samples
w e continue to support all our communication programmes through our toolbox — employee
magazine ‘be inspired’ intranet ‘insight’ and poster campaigns supporting ssl ’s vision and values
attracting talent
w e aim to attract highly talented people with the appropriate balance of competencies potential
and cultural fit with our organisation to help take ssl to the next level of development w e are committed
to recognising and encouraging diversity across the organisation and espouse the principle of equality
of opportunity for all employees regardless of gender  race age religion or sexual orientation w e aim to
give people with a disability or who become disabled whilst in our employment the same opportunities
for career progression and training as other employees
creating a safer workplace
providing a safe working environment for our employees has always been a high priority for ssl 
and it continues to be so a new fiveyear programme has been launched with the objective of ensuring  25
a positive saf ety culture throughout all ssl sites with an initial f ocus on manuf acturing and logistics then 
rollout in subsequent years to commercial offices with the focus on educating people to behave in
the right way to prevent accidents our target is to achieve a zero accident rate over the longer term
this programme follows recent successes achieved at a number of sites for example our
manufacturing facility at redruth has recently been accredited with ohsas 18001 certificate for 
its occupational health and safety management systems and our commercial office in budapest
received ‘the healthy workplace’ award presented by the american chamber of commerce for
creating a working environment which is ergonomically designed and where various initiatives have
been introduced to encourage a healthier lifestyle
in the environment
in response to the rise in the level of awareness of environmental issues and the importance 
of these in relation to manufacturing processes product development and material sourcing we
have redefined our environmental programme further information on this new programme and our
performance against our environmental targets can be found in the environment report on ssl ’s
website wwwsslinternationalcom
a sustainable future
for the first time ssl participated in world environment day in june 2007  led by the united
nations environment programme ‘unep’ the theme was climate change a range of activities was
organised at ssl sites across the world to heighten awareness of how we can contribute to minimising
our effects on climate change using materials sourced from unep together with hints and tips on
being more aware of how we use energy employees at ssl sites developed a wide range of initiatives
these ranged from installing a device to turn off lights automatically at times when the offices are
empty in thailand to planting trees in india to competitions with environmental and recycling themes
run for employees’ children at redruth 
in the community
ssl continues to support global national and local communities through the ongoing
development of the durex network working in partnership with thirdparty organisations and
supporting employees in their own endeavours
durex network 
the durex network is a key player in the global sexual health arena over the past year  the network’s
social marketing advocacy and research work have succeeded in firmly positioning it as an expert in the
field and with it reaffirming that ssl is committed to helping improve sexual health worldwide the
success of y aari dosti a comprehensive behaviourchange initiative based in mumbai and gorakhpur
ssl employees at redruth
who took part in world
environment day activities 26 business review 
• annual report and accounts 2008
experiences of ssl ’s
employees during their 
spw placements
in india has been a major social marketing milestone the project designed to improve young men’s
attitudes towards gender roles was led by a partnership between the durex network and several non
governmental organisations 
the global business coalition on hivaids tb and malaria of which ssl is a founding member
showcased program h one of the durex network’s joint initiatives as global best practice in a report 
on the feminisation of hivaids research has brought several successes too the 2007 face of global
sex report was presented at several highprofile global sexual health conferences and two scientific
papers were published in the european journal of contraception and foreign policy magazine
some new tools have also been developed to help further raise the durex network profile challenges
the new  quarterly  durex network enewsletter  was created to explore key issues in the global sexual health
arena the newsletter now in its 4th issue is increasingly being referenced on sexual health websites
proof of its growing success and the durex network is now online at wwwdurexnetworkorg this new
platform will be crucial in continuing to raise awareness of the work we are doing via the durex network
looking ahead the durex network is set to carry onward and upward with further invitations to
present at conferences — including the 2008 global health council conference — and the publication 
of the 2008 face of global sex report which will look at sexual confidence
helping to change lives
during 2007  in partnership with youthled international development agency students partnership
worldwide ‘spw’ five ssl employees each spent two weeks using their professional skills to assist in
the development of spw organisations in subsaharan africa and south asia spw’s methodology is 
to place young people at the forefront of change and development to address hivaids sexual and
reproductive health environmental and educational issues 
through implementing a new accounting and reporting system developing communication
strategies to help attract additional funding and recruit volunteers and building techniques and processes
to support appraisals motivation and delegation ssl employees from the uk poland the netherlands
hungary and germany contributed greatly to the ongoing development of the local spw organisations
in countries as wideranging as zambia nepal and zimbabwe through this partnership our employees
benefited from gaining different life experiences and also from the opportunity to provide valueadded
benefits for communities in remote parts of the world we plan to continue this partnership with 
spw in 2008 by expanding the programme to offer a further 10 placement opportunities to ssl
employees globally 
local country initiatives 
our commercial and manufacturing units take their responsibility towards aiding their local
communities very seriously during 200708 activities have included construction of tsunamicyclone
shelters in india promoting the importance of mathematics in the workplace for school children in
peterlee uk and environmental improvement at the public bangsaen beach in thailand 27
thursday
713am
scholl cracked heel repair cream is a
clinically proven fastacting solution for
repairing rough dry and cracked skin which 
is specially concentrated for the skin on the
heel — with visible results in just three days 28 business review 
• annual report and accounts 2008
“we are maximising the efficiency 
of our capital base through 
margin growth and operating 
cash generation”
mark moran
group finance director 29
continued
doubledigit
operating
profit growth
ssl ’s results for the year ended 31 march 2008 are set out on page 48 t otal sales were 
£5339 million compared with £4802 million last year generating an operating profit before 
financing and oneoff restructuring charges but after associates of £68 1 million 2007 £56 1 million
the operating margin was up more than one percentage point to 128 per cent 2007 117 per cent
pretax profit before oneoff restructuring charges was £57 4 million compared to £469 million
last year and on the same basis earnings per share increased by 20 per cent to 206 pence 
2007 17  1 pence
operating cash flow before oneoff restructuring costs was £7 46 million compared to 
£609 million last year net debt at the year end was £990 million 2007 £887 million 
analysis of results
in the commentary on performance below comparatives have been adjusted to constant
foreign currency exchange rates and include a full year of the china durex business acquired 
in january 2007 
sales
sales for the year were £5339 million up 69 per cent compared with £4993 million last year
sales are analysed in t able 1 on page 30 
durex
durex sales rose 94 per cent to £217 7 million with continued strong growth in the uk italy
eastern europe and china
sales of durex condoms increased by 84 per cent to £1855 million as the premium ranges 
such as pleasuremax and pleasuremax warming performed well the extensions to our distribution
network in china and eastern europe are enabling durex to target an ever wider consumer base
sales of the durex play range which includes personal lubricants and vibrators grew 154 per
cent or £43 million to £322 million this category benefited from a strong performance of durex
play 2 in 1 massage gel in markets such as italy spain and eastern europe our lubricants range is 
now a wellestablished segment within the durex portfolio with growing consumer demand and
enhanced product offerings
the brand development focus is on enhancing people’s sexual wellbeing with product range
extensions in each of the three core areas of condoms personal lubricants and vibrators where we
have recently launched ultra t ouch and new allure we have also recently launched durex play o — 
a first to market clitoral stimulating gel — in france with rollout planned over the current financial year 
performance
review 30 business review 
• annual report and accounts 2008
scholl footcare
sales of scholl footcare were £1136 million up by 10 1 per cent this performance has been
driven principally by the success of new products such as scholl cracked heel repair cream
together with strong performance of new scholl pharmacy ranges in germany and france
additional marketing investment and new product developments such as the revolutionary
perfect nail t reatment continue to bring the scholl brand name to a new generation of consumers
and we expect to see continued strong performance within this category
scholl footwear
scholl footwear sales were £76 1 million an increase of £69 million or 100 per cent this
performance has been achieved thanks to the solid sellin of the springsummer ’08 range coupled
with the positive consumer response to our revamped autumnwinter ’07 range 
footwear enjoyed solid growth in italy greece france and iberia and we also benefited from 
a positive footwear performance in south east asia 
after several difficult years it is encouraging to achieve a turnaround in scholl footwear sales 
we believe that we are now establishing a strong platform to ensure sustained growth in this category 
orthaheel
in november 2007 we completed the acquisition of the orthaheel orthastyle vas and vasyli
brands and related assets in europe and asia pacific these ranges of orthotic insoles and shoes are
an excellent strategic fit with our existing scholl business 
in the five months to year end these brands have generated sales of £18 million £1 million in
scholl footcare and £08 million in scholl footwear we expect this performance to improve as we
rollout this brand to our established european markets during the current financial year
locally owned brands
sales of locally owned brands decreased by 23 per cent to £714 million the decline in the uk otc
brand portfolio outweighed the positive performance of mister baby and sauber in italy
other sales
other sales which includes distribution of thirdparty products and unbranded condoms increased
by 05 per cent to £55 1 million 
brand contribution fixed costs and operating profit 
1
brand contribution defined as gross margin less market development and variable selling
expenditure increased by £142 million or 7 3 per cent the growth in brand contribution was driven
by higher sales and an improvement in gross margin 600 per cent compared with 594 per cent for
t able 1 adjusted 
2
adjusted
31 mar 2008 31 mar 2007 growth
£m £m 
durex 2177 1990 94
scholl footcare 1136 1032 101
scholl footwear 761 692 100
locally owned brands 714 731 23
t otal branded consumer 4788 4445 77
other 551 548 05
t otal sales 5339 4993 69
2
adjusted to constant foreign currency exchange rates and including 100 per cent of the
china durex business
1
before oneoff restructuring charges 31
last year and was achieved despite the planned £7 3 million increase in advertising expenditure 
in the year 
the gross margin improvement reflects the continued effort by the group to lower the cost 
of manufacturing despite increases in raw material and labour costs further benefits of the supply
chain restructuring will be seen in the next financial year the gross margin also benefits from near
doubledigit growth in higher margin durex and scholl footcare sales
operating expenses of £1395 million continued to reduce as a percentage of sales from 265 per
cent to 26 1 per cent the increase in absolute terms of £7 2 million reflects a strategic investment in
additional research and development to support our innovation pipeline and investment in our sales
and marketing teams in china germany and france we expect both of these investments to make
continuing contributions to organic growth in the next 12 to 18 months
operating profit increased by £7 0 million 115 per cent representing a 128 per cent operating
margin 2007 122 per cent
oneoff charges
we have provided for oneoff charges of £465 million in the full year of this £413 million relates
to the restructuring of our european supply chain notably the closures of our rubi condom factory
near barcelona our cambridge technical facility and our guernsey pharmaceutical manufacturing
facility additionally we have incurred oneoff finance charges of £52 million relating to the early
repayment of the private placement bonds the expected cash payback from these oneoff costs 
is approximately two and a half years
cash flow and net borrowings
operating cash flow in the period before oneoff restructuring costs was £7 46 million 
2007 £609 million with improvements in working capital generating £44 million operating 
cash flow is defined as cash generated from operations of £529 million 2007 £494 million before
cash paid in respect of restructuring provisions of £217 million 2007 £115 million
closing net borrowings were £990 million compared to £887 million at 31 march 2007  the
higher net borrowings reflects the oneoff cash costs  these oneoff cash costs are made up of 
£144 million relating to european supply chain restructuring £29 million relating mainly to historic
restructuring provisions and £44 million of oneoff finance costs an additional £163 million cash
outflow relates to acquisitions during the year
we retain a strong balance sheet and our existing bank facilities £220 million revolving credit
facility expiring in january 2012 were all refinanced in the early part of 2007 
operating expenses as a percentage of sales
0708
0607
0506
at constant exchange rates and before oneoff restructuring charges
26 1
265
286
earnings per share
0708
0607
0506
before oneoff restructuring and finance charges
206 pence
17  1 pence
128 pence 32 business review 
• governance • annual report and accounts 2008
interest and taxation
net interest and financing costs for the period were £159 million 2007 £92 million of this 
£52 million related to the oneoff early repayment charge on the private placement bonds underlying
net interest before oneoff finance charges was £88 million 2007 £8 0 million the ias 19 net pension
finance charge for the period was £19 million 2007 £30 million the prior period interest cost
benefited from an ias 39 credit of £18 million
the tax charge of £118 million 2007 £13 1 million includes a credit of £43 million relating to 
the oneoff charges the effective tax rate excluding the oneoff charges and associated tax credit 
is 28 per cent
earnings per share
earnings per share before oneoff charges increased by 20 per cent to 206 pence 
2007 17  1 pence after the oneoff charges the net loss per share was 15 pence shareholders’ 
funds at 31 march 2008 were £1138 million 2007 £97 6 million
litigation
this is detailed in note 26
capital structure and treasury policy
ias 32 ias 39 and ifrs 7
ias 32 ias 39 and ifrs 7 require that certain disclosures relating to financial instruments are
given in the financial statements in order to provide information on the impact of such instruments on
the group’s risk profile how this may affect the group’s performance and financial position and how
those risks are managed the impact of those financial instruments is considered in notes 22 and 23
foreign exchange risk objective
the nature of the group’s trading activities generates transactional foreign exchange rate risks these
arise from the sourcing of raw materials from different countries the location of group production
facilities throughout the world and the sale and distribution of finished goods in many locations the
objective of the group’s foreign exchange policy is to minimise the trade exposure to foreign exchange
rate fluctuations for the overseas entities and manage the risk from the centre this requires that 
all tradingrelated exposures should be centralised in accordance with prescribed procedures and
timetables under the direction of the group t reasury function which hedges the major exposures
using forward contracts and options usually up to a period of 12 months
interest rate exposure objective
the interest rate risk management policy aims to reduce the impact of interest rate fluctuations
on the group’s net interest expense to acceptable levels this is achieved through balancing the 
ratio of fixed or hedged debt to those financial liabilities with floating interest rates board approved
instruments available to hedge this exposure include interest rate swaps interest rate options and
forward rate agreements details of the interest rate analysis are given in note 23
liquidity risk
the primary objective of the group t reasury policy is to ensure that the group is able at all times
to meet its financial commitments as they fall due t o facilitate this the group t reasury department 
is responsible for the management of cash and liquid resources for the whole group and ensures that
the group has sufficient liquidity to meet any reasonable change in funding requirements the group’s
liquidity is defined as the aggregate of the group’s cash liquid resources and central undrawn
committed facilities as at 31 march 2008 amounted to £1417 million 2007 £2564 million
mark moran
group finance director
19 may 2008 33
12 3 4 5
67 8 9
5 peter read senior independent director 69
appointed in march 2002 peter is chairman of the
nomination and remuneration committees he is a 
nonexecutive director of vernalis plc and an independent
director of innogenetics nv  previously peter was a senior
executive of hoechst and president of abpi a nonexecutive
director of celltech group plc and a member of the board of
the south east development agency
6 richard adam 50
appointed as a nonexecutive director and chairman of
the audit committee in november 2003 richard is currently
group finance director of carillion plc prior to this he was
group finance director of associated british ports holdings
plc richard is a fellow of the institute of chartered
accountants of england and wales
7  susan murray 51
appointed in january 2005 susan is currently chairman of
fb raphael 1 limited the holding company of farrow and ball
paint and wallpaper business and a nonexecutive director
of enterprise inns plc imperial t obacco plc wm morrisons
supermarkets plc compass group plc and the advertising
standards authority previously susan was chief executive of
littlewoods stores limited susan will stand down as a director
after this year’s annual general meeting
8 anna catalano 48
appointed in november 2004 anna has held senior global
marketing and sales positions in amoco including president
amoco orient oil company and was group vice president
marketing at bp plc she is a nonexecutive director of willis
group limited and the us company hercules incorporated
company secretary
9 maria buxtonsmith 43
appointed company secretary in january 2008 after
joining  as assistant secretary in 2002 maria has previously
held company secretarial positions at whitbread plc and
heron corporation plc
executive directors
1 garry watts chief executive 51
appointed as chief executive on 1 april 2004 after joining
as group finance director in february 2001 he was previously
an executive director of celltech group plc and finance director
of medeva plc garry is a nonexecutive director of protherics
plc and of stagecoach group plc he was until may 2008 a
nonexecutive director of the medicines and healthcare
products regulatory agency
2 mark moran group finance director 48
appointed as group finance director in june 2004 mark is
a nonexecutive director and chairman of the audit committee
of brixton plc he was previously finance director of porvair plc
3 ian adamson 
managing director europe and americas 49
appointed as executive director in april 2004 in addition
to his role as managing director for europe and the americas
ian also has responsibility for group marketing he joined
seton healthcare in 1991 as director of marketing and has
subsequently held a number of senior sales marketing and
general management positions within the group he previously
held sales and marketing positions at johnson and johnson
and w l gore  associates 
nonexecutive directors
4 gerald corbett chairman 56
chairman since august 2005 gerald is also chairman 
of britvic plc moneysupermarketcom group plc the royal
national institute for the deaf and a nonexecutive director 
of greencore group plc previous executive positions include
chief executive of railtrack plc and group finance director
of both grand metropolitan plc and redland plc whilst past
nonexecutive directorships include chairman of woolworths
group plc and nonexecutive director of mepc plc and
burmah castrol plc
board of 
directors 34 governance 
• annual report and accounts 2008
are four nonexecutive directors one of whom is the senior independent
director ‘sid’ and two executive directors
details of the chairman’s professional commitments are included in his
biography  the board is satisfied that the other commitments of the chairman
do not interfere with the performance of his duties as chairman the board
considers that all of the nonexecutive directors are independent in character
and judgement and by reference to the combined code and that controls are
in place to ensure that no single director has unfettered powers of decision
the management of operational matters within the group is delegated 
to the executive committee which comprises the executive directors and
certain other senior executives the executive committee meets monthly
board evaluation
during the year the board reviewed the process for the evaluation of the
performance of the board its committees and the individual directors previous
evaluations have been conducted internally and led by the chairman whilst
the sid conducted the evaluation of the chairman the board concluded that
this process remained appropriate 
all directors were required to complete a detailed questionnaire which
each director then discussed with the chairman and with the sid in relation 
to responses about the chairman 
the board considers the annual evaluation to be a valuable process which
has contributed to fostering an environment within the board that is challenging
but supportive and encourages focus on the main issues facing the group 
in 200607  the recommendations included a more detailed halfyear review
on strategy and greater focus on succession planning these matters are now
incorporated into the board’s annual schedule
dialogue with shareholders
the company has a comprehensive investor relations programme
involving existing and potential investors within the uk and overseas 
the chief executive finance director and certain senior executives meet
with institutional investors on a regular basis the chairman and sid make
themselves available to meet with institutional investors the sid attends 
the preliminary and interim results presentations with investors and analysts
an investor relations report is presented and considered at each board meeting
the board uses the annual general meeting which all directors attend to
communicate with investors and encourage their participation the directors
are available to speak informally with shareholders after the meeting
board committees
the board has established three committees each committee operates
in accordance with formal terms of reference which are reviewed annually
and can be viewed on the company’s website wwwsslinternationalcom
committee chairmen report at the next meeting on the proceedings of the
committee which they chair 
the membership and a summary of the principal activities of each
committee is shown in the table on the opposite page
policy on auditors’ independence
safeguarding the independence of the external auditors is paramount
and controls are in place to ensure their continued independence however
there are occasions when services can be more efficiently undertaken by the
external auditor and at no risk of impairment of their independence the audit
committee has put in place a detailed policy on the provision of services by
the external auditors that sets out the services which the external auditors are
allowed to carry out on behalf of the group and those which are prohibited to
them under this policy external auditors cannot be engaged to provide any 
of the following services
—design or implementation of it systems
—valuation
—internal audit and
—litigation support legal or corporate finance advice tax advice if on a wholly
or partly contingent fee basis recruitment executive compensation
advice accounting and actuarial valuation 
secondment of senior audit staff to the company is also prohibited
introduction
the board is responsible for delivering value to shareholders and 
other stakeholders by developing strategy and by leading the group 
ensuring that the appropriate resources processes and controls are 
in place to execute that strategy developing and maintaining high 
standards of corporate governance is integral to the delivery of value 
this report explains ssl ’s corporate governance arrangements 
and how the group has applied the combined code on corporate
governance the ‘code’
the board
there is a written schedule of matters reserved to the board 
this schedule includes
—approvaldevelopment of the group’s longterm objectives and
commercial strategy
—approval of annual operating and capital expenditure budgets and any
material changes to them
—review of performance in the light of the group’s strategy objectives
business plans and budgets and ensuring that any necessary corrective
action is taken
—approval of major capital projects including acquisitions
—approval of contracts which are material strategically  or by reason of size and
—monitoring the system of internal control and corporate governance
t o ensure proper consideration at the appropriate time the board 
has a schedule of matters for each meeting these matters include
—reports from the chief executive and finance director
—health and safety
—presentations from the heads of the business units
—investor relations and
—regulatory reviews
the board also receives regular updates on relevant legal and
environmental matters
the table below sets out the number of scheduled board and 
committee meetings held during the year and the attendance by 
directors at those meetings
during the year under review the board continued to be led by the
chairman gerald corbett garry watts the chief executive is primarily
responsible for the effective running of the group’s business there is a clear
written schedule on the division of responsibilities between the chairman and
the chief executive in addition to the chairman and chief executive there
corporate
governance
scheduled auditnominationremuneration
board committee committee committee
meetings meetings meetings meetings
i adamson 77
r adam 77 44 33 44
g corbett 77 33 44
a catalano 77 44 44
m moran 77
s murray 77 44 44
p read 77 44 33 44
g watts 77 33
the figures in brackets indicate the maximum number of meetings in the period in which
the individual was a board member when directors are unable to attend meetings they
receive the relevant papers and are invited to comment in advance of the meeting one
of the board meetings was devoted solely to strategy under this policy it has been agreed that due to their understanding 
of the group’s business and therefore ensuring cost efficiency the external
auditors may be engaged for the following nonaudit services for which there
is a preagreed limit for fees not including va t which do not require prior
approval from the audit committee
—auditrelated regulatory reporting including interim review covenant
reporting and other audit certificates £100000
—further assurance including advice on accounting matters nonregulatory
reporting on internal controls or corporate governance due diligence work
and environmental audits £100000 and
—t ax compliance and tax advisory services £300000
the chairman of the audit committee may approve urgent engagements
not covered by these categories subsequently notifying the audit committee
at its next meeting a breakdown of fees paid to the external auditors during
the year is set out on page 56
internal control
the board is responsible for the group’s system of internal control and
for reviewing its effectiveness and this is monitored by the audit committee
key elements of this system include
—regular board meetings with a formal schedule of matters reserved for
board discussion
—clearly defined organisational structures and appropriate delegation 
of authority adherence to which is kept under review
—centralised treasury operations operating within defined limits
—review of the group’s accounting manuals and procedures 
35
—receipt of annual compliance statements from all statutory units within 
the group stating compliance with group accounting manuals and
—an effective internal audit function providing independent scrutiny of
internal control systems and risk management procedures
risk management is embedded within the daytoday activities of 
all executives management of this area is the responsibility of the group
operating committee a significant element of this process is the maintenance
of a group risk matrix the ‘matrix’ the matrix contains both financial and
nonfinancial risks identified through regular topdown and bottomup reviews
the board believes that the company operates an effective embedded
system of internal control and is confident that it complies with internal control
guidance for directors on the combined code the ‘t urnbull report’
further information about the risk management processes is given on
pages 36 to 37 
combined code compliance
during the year the company complied with the code except in the
following respect
a4 1 the nomination committee comprises the chairman the chief executive
the sid and a nonexecutive director  whilst the board considers the chairman
to be independent membership of this committee does not consist of a
majority of independent nonexecutive directors as defined by the code
going concern
after making enquiries the directors believe that the group and the
company have adequate resources to operate for the foreseeable future 
for this reason they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing
the financial statements
audit
richard adam
anna catalano
susan murray
peter read
chairman
chief executive
finance director
external auditor
head of business assurance
financial controller
company secretary
review of financial statements
including halfyear and annual reports
interim management statements and
considering the comments of the
external auditor thereon
review of risk management and
internal control systems
review of the group’s internal audit
processes including approval of the
annual internal audit plan
monitoring the provision of services 
by the external auditors and an annual
appraisal of their effectiveness as
auditors see the policy on auditors’
independence on the previous page
committee chairman
members
attending by invitation
summary of the principal
activities of the committees
during the year
nomination
peter read
richard adam
gerald corbett
garry watts
group hr director
company secretary
reviewing the size and composition 
of the board including the mix of skills
and experience
consideration of succession issues
recommending the reelection 
of directors at the annual general
meeting
remuneration
peter read
richard adam
anna catalano
gerald corbett
susan murray
chief executive
group hr director
company secretary
reviewing the remuneration policy
for the executive directors and the
executive committee
developing proposals for an
enhancement to the performance
share plan
further information on the work 
of this committee can be found in
the remuneration report on 
pages 39 to 45
board committees membership and principal activities 36 governance 
• annual report and accounts 2008
there are risks and uncertainties connected to the group’s businesses
the factors listed opposite are among those that the group thinks could cause
the actual results to differ materially from expected and historical results
risk management is an important element of the system of internal
control this system is designed to manage rather than eliminate the risk of
failure to achieve business objectives and can only provide reasonable and
not absolute assurance against material loss 
the risk management process involves making all managers within the
group responsible for risk management and for ensuring that a full assessment
of risks both financial and nonfinancial has been completed this is achieved
by a bottomup and topdown review of risks throughout the group from
which a group risk matrix has been developed this process has embedded
risk management within the operational and executive management
throughout the group 
the group risk matrix is reviewed twice a year overall responsibility for
the risk management process lies with the global operating committee ‘goc’
which comprises the executive directors the executive committee and certain
other senior managers
an overview of the process is presented below
risks and 
uncertainties
board of directors
audit committee business assurance
group risk matrix owned by goc external audit
unit risk register managed 
by unit management
divisional risk register managed 
by divisional management
goc
divisional management t eam
operating unit 37
mitigating action and management
—dual sourcing and ability to switch production
—follow up on recommendations from the
annual business interruption review
—development and continuous review of
business continuity plans
—defined methodology for controlling 
npd projects
—steering committees chaired by the chief
executive to monitor npd activities
—continuous market surveillance to gather
information on competitor activity
—npd process focused on delivering ‘value added’
products to customers
—groupwide management of key accounts
—robust financial and risk analysis of geographic
expansion including the use of external advisers
—strong management reporting structures
ensure that emerging risks are identified quickly
—continuous effort to spread revenue generation
across global operations
—group hr continually reviews the talent pool in
the organisation and identifies succession risks
—remuneration and hr policies to ensure that
the group employs highlymotivated well
remunerated successorientated people
—wideranging training opportunities to provide
continuous development opportunities
—continuous testing of backup procedures and
disaster recovery plans
—group it provides system support in key markets
—product liability insurance
—strong technical and quality assurance team 
—key principle within the group to use regulation
as a competitive advantage
—dedicated teams conducting environmental
and hs audits in operating facilities
description
failure eg at a factory by a thirdparty supplier
or a failure at a warehouse
failure in npd pipeline resulting in loss of sales
and profits
—unforeseen competitor activity
—increased margin pressure from large 
retail groups
—geographic expansion into emerging markets
—effects on financial performance of economic
downturn in a major market
recruiting and retaining key members of staff
—failure of it system to support key business
processesfunctions resulting in loss of sales
and profits
—major product liability claims
—inability to supply products resulting from
failure to comply with regulatory demands
leading to financial loss and damaged brand
reputation
—impact on reputation resulting from negative
environmental or health and safety reports
risk
disruption to the group supply chain
failure of new product development ‘npd’
commercial risks
inadequate succession planning
it system failure
failure to comply with regulatory matters
including environmental and health and
safety matters 38 governance 
• annual report and accounts 2008
major shareholders
as at 19 may 2008 the company had been notified of the following
material interests in accordance with the disclosure and t ransparency rules
articles of association
the company’s articles of association ‘articles’ give power to the 
board to appoint directors but require directors to submit themselves for
election at the first agm following their appointment and to retire by rotation
every three years the articles may be amended by special resolution of the
shareholders
the board of directors is responsible for the management of the
business of the company and may exercise all the powers of the company
subject to the provision of the relevant statutes and the company’s
memorandum and articles of association the articles contain specific
provision and restrictions regarding the company’s power to borrow money
powers relating to the issuing and buying back of shares are also included in
the articles the authority to issue shares and to disapply preemption rights 
is renewed by the shareholders each year at the annual general meeting
there are no agreements between the company and its directors or
employees providing for compensation for loss of office or employment
whether through resignation purported redundancy or otherwise that
occurs because of a takeover bid
the bank facilities agreement includes a change of control clause
whereby negotiations would be entered into with a view to agreeing ongoing
terms of the facility if a change in ownership occurs
employment policies
the group’s employment policies reflect its commitment to equality 
and diversity in all aspects of employment profit related bonus schemes were
in operation during the year for certain employees further details of policies
and initiatives are given in the business and corporate responsibility reviews
on pages 11 to 26
creditor payment policy
the group does not follow any specific external code or standard on
payments practice payments to suppliers are made in accordance with
agreed terms the company itself had no trade creditors at 31 march 2008 
or 31 march 2007 
charitable and political donations
the group made charitable donations of £02million 2007 £0 1 million
no political donations were made in this or the previous year
disclosure of information to auditors
the directors who held office at the date of approval of this directors’
report confirm that so far as they are each aware there is no relevant audit
information of which the company’s auditors are unaware and each director
has taken all steps that they ought to have taken as a director to make
themselves aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that 
the company’s auditors are aware of that information
auditors
kpmg audit plc has expressed its willingness to remain in office as auditor
at the 2008 agm after proper consideration the audit committee is satisfied
that kpmg audit plc continues to be objective and independent of the group
by order of the board
maria buxtonsmith
company secretary
19 may 2008
the directors present their report and financial statements for the year
ended 31 march 2008
principal activities and business review
the company is required under the requirements of the business review
to set out in the annual report the principal activities of the group during the
course of the financial year ended 31 march 2008 the position of the group at
the end of the financial year and of the principal risks and uncertainties it faces
the information required for the business review can be found in the
chairman’s statement on pages 4 to 5 the chief executive’s review on pages 
6 to 9 and in the performance review on pages 28 to 33
results and dividend
the group’s profit before tax was £109m an interim dividend of 23 pence
per ordinary share was paid on 5 march 2008 the directors recommend a final
dividend of 53 pence per share which subject to shareholder approval at the
annual general meeting ‘agm’ on 24 july 2008 will be paid on 4 september
2008 to shareholders on the register on 1 august 2008 this will make a total
dividend of 7 6 pence per share 2007 68 pence
board of directors
the group board section on page 33 gives the biographical details of the
current directors and the company secretary all of the directors served
throughout the year
the directors’ interests in the share capital of the company and share
options in the company as at 31 march 2008 are set out in the remuneration
report on pages 39 to 45
in accordance with the articles of association richard adam peter read
and garry w atts will retire by rotation at the agm f ollowing a recommendation
by the nomination committee and in line with the results of the board
evaluation the process for which is described in the corporate governance
report the board recommends to shareholders that these directors be
reappointed at the agm susan murray will stand down as a director after 
the agm
the company has the authority under its memorandum and articles 
of association to agree individual contracts of indemnity with its directors 
and others also known as qualifying thirdparty indemnity provisions ‘qtpip’
t o date no qtpip has been entered into
annual general meeting ‘agm’
the agm will be held at the cii insurance hall 20 aldermanbury 
london ec2v 7hy beginning at 1030 am on 24 july 2008
the notice of the agm specifies deadlines for exercising voting rights and
appointing a proxy or proxies to vote in relation to resolutions to be passed at
the agm all proxy votes are counted and the numbers for against or withheld
in relation to each resolution are announced at the agm
share capital
the details of shares issued during the year and outstanding options are
given in notes 18 and 19 to the consolidated financial statements
authority to purchase shares
the directors were authorised at the 2007 agm to purchase the
company’s own shares within certain limits although no such purchases
were made during the financial year the directors will seek approval to renew
this authority at the 2008 agm
the company is not aware of any agreements between shareholders
which may result in restrictions on the transfer of securities andor voting rights
directors’ 
report
number of percentage of
sharesvoting issued share
shareholder rights capital
blackrock inc 28523862 1494
liontrust investment services ltd 10519998 551
fmr corp 9591060 503
amvescap plc 9511193 499
fmr llc 9481017 496
fc asset management plc 9437628 495
j p morgan chase  co 9200001 483
l  g group plc 7826166 410 dear shareholder
i submit the directors’ remuneration report for the year ended 
31 march 2008 
the remuneration committee’s aim is to establish a remuneration
framework which incentivises the senior team to outperform against
challenging targets selected to provide a clear link between the achievement
of the group’s goals and their reward this approach established in 2005
continues to contribute to the success of the ssl group the performance
graph on page 45 showing the company’s t otal shareholder return
performance as compared to the ftse 350 index illustrates this 
t o build on this success this year the group is setting accelerated growth
targets which are designed to build on the outstanding performance to date
and be even more challenging than the targets set in the previous three years
therefore to incentivise the executive directors to outperform against these
particularly stretching targets it is proposed that annual and longterm
incentives be enhanced the maximum annual bonus has been increased
slightly and it is proposed that an exceptional grant be made under the
performance share plan ‘psp’ this is subject to a change to the rules of the
psp  which will require the approval of shareholders at the annual general
meeting ‘agm’ further detail is contained in this report and in the notice 
of annual general meeting a full explanation of the remuneration policy is
given below
peter read
chairman remuneration committee
this report has been prepared in accordance with the companies act
1985 as amended by the directors’ report regulations 2002 the report 
also explains how the company has applied the combined code in relation 
to directors’ remuneration
the remuneration committee the ‘committee’
composition of the committee
peter read
committee chairman and senior independent director
gerald corbett
group chairman and nonexecutive director
richard adam
nonexecutive director
anna catalano
nonexecutive director
susan murray
nonexecutive director
all members of the committee served throughout the year susan murray
will stand down as a nonexecutive director and from the committee after
the agm the board considers that all members of the committee are
independent of the group 
advisers to the committee
the chief executive company secretary and group human resources
director who are generally invited to attend committee meetings provide
advice andor services to the committee no executive participates in any
discussion concerning his or her own remuneration
39
the committee receives advice from independent consultants during
the year the committee received advice from the following consultants
with the exception of hewitt new bridge street these consultants also
provide advice to the company on the following matters ernst  y oung llp
advises the company on taxation matters relating to expatriate employees
watson wyatt also provides insurance broking and benefits advisory and
administrative services in the uk the committee is satisfied that the
provision of advice to the company does not result in a conflict of interests
activities of the committee
the committee which meets at least four times a year has a schedule 
of the principal items to be discussed each meeting the purpose of the
schedule is to ensure that all material matters are fully considered at the
appropriate time such matters include
—a review of remuneration policy and framework
—consideration of benchmarking data in relation to executives’ remuneration
packages and
—a review of performance measures for the group’s incentive schemes
the committee chairman reports to the board on the principal matters
discussed at the committee copies of all committee minutes are available 
to the directors
the committee’s terms of reference which are reviewed annually can 
be viewed on the company’s website wwwsslinternationalcom
remuneration policy
the main objective of the policy is to attract retain and motivate those
people of the highest calibre who have the skills needed to lead the group to
achieve its objectives year on year
the principles of the policy are
—providing a truly motivational incentive scheme which drives individuals to
work to outperform against challenging targets
—establishing that variable pay provides the material element to executives’
total reward
—ensuring that there is an appropriate and increasing balance between 
shortterm and longterm targets with a significant proportion of the
remuneration subject to carefully considered longterm performance
conditions
—aligning the interests of executives with those of shareholders
—effectively using the company’s equity for the purposes of reward 
and retention and
—encouraging executives to build and maintain a meaningful shareholding 
in the company
remuneration
report
consultant advice provided to the committee
hewitt new bridge street on the group’s medium and longterm
incentive arrangements
ernst  young llp on the operation of the group’s share
schemes and the calculation of the group’s
t otal shareholder return
watson wyatt limited benchmarking data in relation to the total
reward packages of the executive directors
and the executive committee 40 governance 
• annual report and accounts 2008
the potential payment of the annual bonus for both the eva and eps
parts of the bonus will be as shown in the following table
the threshold of 97 5 per cent of target represents an increase over the
actual 200708 eps before oneoff losses and an improvement in eva over
the prior year no bonus would be payable on the achievement of results below
97 5 per cent of target a straightline sliding scale of payment will operate
between the points in the target range the threshold is raised to 97 5 per cent
from 95 per cent in the previous year maximum bonus would be paid upon
achievement of 105 per cent of target 200 7  115 per cent
the committee has changed the scale of performance versus target to
reflect the tougher level of performance required to achieve target performance
achieving target 100 per cent will be a significant achievement for the group
and in this regard the degree of stretch above budget is considered by the
committee to be suitably stretching
the annual bonus scheme is designed to drive complementary
behaviours across the senior executive population as well as aligning with 
the group’s goals and with shareholders’ interests the table illustrates the
cascade of targets for the year ended 31 march 2009 for the ‘business driver
group’ currently approximately 35 employees t ypically individuals will be
bonused on two to three of these targets 
overall the committee is satisfied that the annual bonus plan has
created an excellent link between reward and company performance
performance share plan ‘psp’
executive directors and certain other executives are entitled to
participate in the psp  which is the group’s only longterm incentive plan
under the psp  conditional awards of shares are granted each year
other than in exceptional circumstances the value of awards as at the
date of grant does not normally exceed 100 per cent of an executive’s base
salary subject to the satisfaction of performance conditions determined
annually by the committee awards vest on the third anniversary of grant
performance conditions are determined annually by the committee 
details of awards granted since 2005 are given on page 45 
the committee has considered carefully the award levels and
performance conditions attached to the 200809 awards as set out in recent
results presentations company performance has been outstanding and 
with a number of strategic initiatives ongoing and being contemplated the
committee considers that it is critical that this highly talented management
the structure of remuneration for executives is illustrated in the chart
below this shows the proportionate breakdown of the package at target and
maximum remuneration showing the target levels of the annual bonus and
performance share plan as a proportion of the maximum
base salary salaries are reviewed annually and are determined by
individual performance and by reference to market salary levels obtained
from independent sources this is the only element of remuneration which is
pensionable base salary increases during the year ended 31 march 2008 for
executive directors were between 57 per cent and 210 per cent the increase
in ian adamson’s salary reflects an extension of his responsibilities as he took
direct responsibility for the ssl americas business and for group marketing 
in determining base salary levels for executive directors pay and conditions 
in the workforce generally are taken into account
annual bonus plan this is a cash plan designed to drive complementary
behaviours within the wider executive population
the maximum potential bonus payable to the executive directors for 
the 200809 financial year has increased to 125 per cent of base salary for the
chief executive and to 115 per cent of base salary for the executive directors
previously 115 per cent and 100 per cent respectively the committee is
satisfied that the restructured bonus will provide an appropriate incentive 
to reward the executives for continued outstanding annual operational
performance and execution of group strategy each year the target setting
approach will ensure that any bonus payable above market levels must be
subject to extremely challenging performance criteria no specific targets 
are set for the executive directors relating to environmental social and
governance ‘esg’ performance the company’s performance in regard 
to esg matters is robustly monitored and the committee would consider 
any failure in these areas when determining any payment of a bonus
the performance measures are unchanged from the previous year 
onethird of the annual bonus will be based on economic value added ‘eva’
targets and twothirds will be based on a range of challenging earnings per
share ‘eps’ targets 
eva which is calculated as normalised operating profit after tax less the
cost of all capital employed to produce those earnings captures the three
basic generic strategies for creating value
—t o increase economic return for capital employed
—t o grow by investing in new products whose return more than compensates
for the risk taken and
—t o curtail investment and divert capital from uneconomic activities
eva was introduced as a performance measure in the previous financial
year the committee is satisfied that eva continues to be an effective link
between improved underlying business performance and appropriate reward
to the executive directors
performance vs target 97 5 100 105
 of salary for chief executive 125 50 125
 of salary for executive directors 115 46 115
performance measure employee level
12 3
earnings per share executive directors 
‘eps’ including the chief 
executive
eva executive directors executive 
including the committee 
chief executive
strategic personal executive certain group 
performance objectives committee management team roles
group brand executive group management
contribution committee team
group operating group management
cash flow management team
operating profit
regional operating regional commercial
cash flow team
regional brand regional commercial
contribution team
regional sales regional commercial 
team
customer service manufacturing and 
logistics team
category brand manufacturing and
contribution logistics team
personal executive certain group 
performance committee commercial and 
manufacturing roles
remuneration
report continued
proportion of fixed vs performancerelated remuneration 
chief executive 
t arget
maximum
other directors
t arget
maximum
0 20 40 60 80 100
salary pension annual bonus performance share plan 41
shares to satisfy awards may be purchased in the market via the
company’s employee benefit t rust or using newly issued shares within 
abi guidelinecompliant dilution limits 
shareholding guidelines
executive directors will be expected to retain at least 50 per cent of 
the shares net of tax which vest to them under the psp until a shareholding
equivalent to 100 per cent of base salary is achieved
pension
the company operates a number of retirement benefit programmes
throughout the world such benefits reflect local competitive conditions 
and legal requirements
in the uk the company operates three defined benefit schemes and 
a contractedin defined contribution scheme the ssl uk pension scheme
the ‘ssl scheme’ for uk employees all uk defined benefit schemes are
closed to new entrants and future pension accrual
executive directors who participate in the ssl scheme contribute 
5 per cent of their base salary executive directors receive 25 per cent of 
base salary in respect of retirement provision any contributions that are not
made in respect of retirement provision are paid as a salary supplement
ian adamson is also a member of one of the defined benefit schemes
garry watts is not a member of the ssl scheme but operates a personal
pension plan garry watts receives 25 per cent of base salary in respect of
retirement provision any contributions that are not made in respect of
retirement provision are paid as a salary supplement and are excluded from
the calculation of bonus entitlements and psp awards
other benefits
the company provides other benefits to the executive directors and
certain other executives namely a company car or car allowance life
assurance permanent health insurance and private medical insurance
service contracts
it is company policy that the notice period in executive directors’
contracts should not exceed one year however the committee retains the
discretion to offer a service contract to a new executive director that contains
an initial notice period in excess of one year in exceptional circumstances
where this is considered necessary
the executive directors’ contracts have no fixed term but provide that
either the director or the company may terminate the employment by giving
one year’s notice
there are no express provisions for compensation payable in the event 
of termination except that garry w atts’ contract provides that if the company
terminates mr watts’ appointment with immediate effect in addition to his
contractual notice period mr watts shall be entitled to a payment equivalent
to the average of any bonus paid within the threeyear period prior to the date
of termination the committee is satisfied that the inclusion of an award in
respect of average annual bonus paid is appropriate as this incorporates a
performancerelated element to any compensation payment
if the employment of an executive director is terminated the committee’s
policy is to apply mitigation to compensation payments at a level determined by
reference to the individual circumstances of the executive director  appropriate
external and human resource advice would be obtained in each case
nonexecutive directors
save as disclosed below none of the nonexecutive directors has a
service contract
gerald corbett was appointed a nonexecutive director and chairman 
of the company on 1 august 2005 for a term of three years terminable by 
12 months’ notice by either party mr corbett receives a fee of £180000 pa
and is entitled to a company car
the basic fee for nonexecutive directors is £40000 pa increased
from £36000 pa with effect from 1 april 2008 an additional fee of 
£10000 pa increased from £5000 pa with effect from 1 april 2008 is 
paid to committee chairmen in addition the senior independent director
peter read receives a further £5000 pa
team is retained and provided with a significant incentive opportunity at the
present time accordingly it is proposed that in addition to the normal award
an exceptional award of 200 per cent of base salary be made to the executive
directors and to certain other key senior executives at lower multiples of
base salary the granting of the exceptional award is dependent upon a
change to the rules of the psp  which will require the approval of shareholders
at the agm
in order for the exceptional award to vest the group must achieve very
stretching eps and eva growth targets accordingly the expected value of 
the exceptional award is considered to be significantly lower than for the
normal award
the vesting of these awards will be subject to the achievement of a
combination of eps onethird and eva twothirds targets the committee
has concluded that the current policy of basing performance conditions on
the company’s financial performance has created a very effective incentive
the committee will continue to monitor performance targets to ensure 
that such targets remain sufficiently stretching and aligned to the interests 
of shareholders
the vesting schedule for the normal and the proposed exceptional
awards granted to executive directors is set out in the table below
a sliding scale of payment will operate between the points in the 
target range
despite eps and eva also being used for the annual bonus plan the
committee is also satisfied that there is in reality relatively little overlap
between these two plans under the psp  performance is measured over 
three years compared to a single financial year for the bonus 
eps and eva will be calculated by the company and achievement of
targets will be independently verified before the awards vest the committee
is satisfied that the target range for both measures is sufficiently stretching
and their achievement would result in significant shareholder value creation
in particular it is recognised that a relatively low by market standards
proportion of the award vests at the initial vesting threshold
the normal award will be granted in late may or early june 2008 the
exceptional award will subject to shareholder approval be granted after the
agm which is being held on 24 july 2008
payment of the total psp award that vests ie the normal plus exceptional
elements will be phased normal awards maximum 100 per cent of salary will
vest after three years in 2011 while the exceptional award will vest in two equal
parts after four years in 2012 and after five years in 2013 stretching the vesting
period for the exceptional award to four and five years will provide a stronger
retention element and alignment with shareholders
awards will not confer shareholder rights until the awards have vested 
and participants have received their shares
participants will be entitled to receive a payment in cash andor shares
on or shortly following the vesting of their awards of an amount equivalent 
to the dividends that would have been paid on those shares between the time
when the awards were granted and the time when they vest
the committee considers that this exceptional incentive will provide a
focus for executives to deliver outstanding performance and improvement 
in shareholder value over the next threeyear period and beyond the psp
rules as amended will allow a similar more tactical use of equity in the future
provided that exceptionally stretching targets are set for awards in excess 
of normal market levels provision to make grants above market levels will 
of course be used sparingly
eps 13rd ev a 23rds 
compound annual growth rate aggregate generated over 
cagr over the three financial the three financial years
years ending march 2011 ending march 2011 
normal award percentage of performance percentage of performance
100 of salary salary vesting scale salary vesting scale
below threshold nil 17 nil £130m
threshold 5  17 10 £130m
maximum 333  20 667 £140m
exceptional award percentage of performance percentage of performance
 200 of salary salary vesting scale salary vesting scale
below threshold nil 20 nil £140m
threshold 10  20 20 £140m
maximum 667  23 1333 £150m
director date of contract
garry watts 5 february 2001
ian adamson 17 june 1996
mark moran 28 may 2004 external appointments
the company recognises that executive directors may be invited to
become nonexecutive directors of other companies these appointments
can be beneficial to both the individual and the company in providing further
experience and knowledge but the company’s consent is required before 
an executive director can accept such an appointment fees are normally
retained by the individual director garry watts and mark moran each hold
such appointments the details are given in the table opposite
notes
1 remuneration shown above relates to the period for which each director
served during the year all directors served throughout the year
2 for the 200708 financial year the performance targets for the annual
bonus were
target threshold stretch actual
eps 191p 1808p 2185p 206p
eva £289m £27 5m £332m £327m
therefore the cash bonus payments will be 
g watts — £598489 i adamson — £259365 and m moran — £233429
these cash bonuses will be paid in june 2008
3 benefits include all taxable benefits arising from employment with 
the company
4 during the year any contributions in respect of retirement provision that
were not made were paid as a salary supplement the amounts paid in the
year which are included in the above table under benefits were as follows
g watts — £140000
i adamson — £51400
m moran — £nil
payment to former director 
m pilkington resigned as an executive director on 22 march 2007 and left 
the company on 30 june 2007  in addition to the terms of his settlement
agreement disclosed last year m pilkington earned £81250 as an employee
for the period 1 april 2007 to 30 june 2007 
directors’ emoluments
audited information
director nonexecutive directorship fee £’000
garry watts stagecoach group plc 44
protherics plc 38
mhra until may 2008 7
mark moran brixton plc 46
42 governance • annual report and accounts 2008
details of the appointments of the other nonexecutive directors are shown below
remuneration
report continued
nonexecutive director appointment letter date of appointment initial term comments
peter read 28 february 2002 21 march 2002 one year renewed annually currently expires on 21 march 2009
richard adam 21 october 2003 13 november 2003 three years renewed for a further three years on 27 march 2006
anna catalano 29 october 2004 11 november 2004 three years renewed for a further year expires 11 november 2008
susan murray 10 november 2004 1 january 2005 three years susan will stand down as a nonexecutive director after
the agm on 24 july 2008
salaries and fees bonus benefits 2008 total 2007 total
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
nonexecutive chairman
g corbett 180 — 6 186 180
executive
g watts 560 598 174 1332 1302
i adamson 300 259 7 4 633 558
m moran 270 233 19 522 514
nonexecutive
r adam 41 — — 41 35
a catalano 36 —— 36 30
s murray 36 — — 36 30
p read 46 — — 46 40
t otal 1469 1090 273 2832 2689 43
directors’ pensions
audited information
the following directors received contributions as detailed below
notes
pension contributions were paid as follows
1 i adamson — into the ssl uk pension scheme and a personal 
pension plan
2 m moran — into the ssl uk pension scheme
directors’ interests in shares 
audited information
shareholdings
the following table shows the beneficial interests of the directors who held office at the end of the year in the ordinary shares of the company
2008 2007
company company
contribution contribution
£’000 £’000
g watts 20 20
i adamson 32 29
m moran 67 62
i adamson 
as noted mr adamson is a member of a defined benefit scheme details are given below
i adamson £
accrued benefit at 1 april 2007 6335
accrued benefit at 31 march 2008 6580
increase in accrued benefits excluding inflation nil
increase in accrued benefits including inflation 245
t ransfer value of increase in accrued benefits excluding inflation nil
t ransfer value of accrued benefits at 31 march 2007 61822
t ransfer value of accrued benefits at 31 march 2008 87943
increase in transfer value 26121
shareholdings shareholdings
as at as at
31 march 2008 31 march 2007
directors as at 31 march 2008
r adam 1506 1500
i adamson 15626 15626
a catalano 1500 1500
g corbett 32500 32500
m moran 1797 1797
s murray — —
p read 5023 5000
g watts 50000 50000
3 during the year the company contributed 10 per cent of any bonus
sacrificed into the executive directors’ pension plan the amounts 
paid in the year included in the above table were as follows
g watts — £20455
i adamson — £9 100
notes 
1 no director held a nonbeneficial interest in any shares
2 with the exception of the exercise of options under the ssl sharesave
scheme described in note 7 on page 44 there have been no changes 
in the interests of serving directors between 31 march 2008 and 
19 may 2008 44 governance 
• annual report and accounts 2008
remuneration
report continued
option schemes
full details of the options over ordinary shares in the company held by executive directors who served during the year and any movements in those options are
shown below
as at lapsed in as at exercise exercisable exercisable
note 310307 the period 310308 price p from to
g watts
1996 scheme 11 2 75698 75698 — 4835 190304 190308
11 2 72260 — 72260 5065 170704 170711
13 2 98305 — 98305 2950 180705 180712
15 2 116232 116232 — 2495 281105 281109
saye scheme 3997 — 3997 2370 010408 011008
total 366492 191930 174562
i adamson
1996 scheme 12 2 20996 20996 — 7425 140603 140607
11 2 30000 — 30000 5000 020704 020708
13 2 54915 — 54915 2950 180705 180712
15 2 48697 48697 — 2495 281105 281109
saye scheme 5527 — 5527 2080 010408 011008
2091 — 2091 2370 010410 011010
total 162226 69693 92533
m moran
1996 scheme 14 2 72815 — 72815 3090 110607 110614
15 2 72815 — 72815 3090 110607 110611
saye scheme 6972 — 6972 2370 010410 011010
total 152602 — 152602
notes
1 exercise is subject to growth in normalised earnings per share during the
performance period exceeding the retail price index rpi the targets for
each grant are as follows
1 1 exercise is subject to growth in normalised earnings per share for not less
than three years commencing on 1 april 2001 exceeding the growth in the
retail price index by at least an average 2 per cent pa this condition has
been met
12 exercise is subject to growth in normalised earnings per share for not less
than three years commencing on 1 april 2000 exceeding the growth in the
retail price index by at least an average 5 per cent pa this condition has
not been met
13 exercise is subject to growth in normalised earnings per share for three
years commencing on 1 april 2002 exceeding the growth in the retail price
index by no less than 2 per cent pa this condition has been met
14 exercise is subject to growth in normalised earnings per share for three
years commencing on 1 april 2004 exceeding the growth in the retail price
index by no less than 3 per cent pa this conditon has been met
15 exercise is subject to performance conditions that must be satisfied 
over initially a threeyear period although this may be extended up to five
years the exercise is subject to growth in normalised earnings per share
exceeding the growth in the retail price index by at least an average of 
3 per cent pa and tsr of the company when compared to tsr of
companies of the ftse 250 reaching sixth decile for 50 per cent of the
option to become exercisable between sixth and eighth for a pro rata
between 50 per cent and 100 per cent of the option to become
exercisable and eighth decile and above for 100 per cent of the option 
to become exercisable the tsr condition has not been met
2 following the disposal of the groups medical business and the resultant
reduction in earnings the committee reviewed the performance
conditions attaching to options granted under the ssl 1996 executive
share option scheme it was agreed that the performance criteria should
be rebased to fairly compare historical earnings with those in the ongoing
business but the rebased figures should be no less stretching than the
previous targets given the share price at the times of grants which was 
in excess of 480 pence the committee determined that only earnings
since the financial year ended 31 march 2002 would be reviewed
consequently the earnings per share figures for the financial years ended
2002 2003 and 2004 were rebased in light of the rise in the share price
during the year the committee agreed that the earnings per share figures
for the financial year 2001 be rebased the calculations to determine the
new figures have been independently checked by ernst  y oung llp 
although ernst  y oung llp express no opinion on the accuracy of the
base data and the appropriateness of the underlying assumptions
3 no options were exercised in the period or the previous period
4 there are no performance criteria for exercise of options under the 
saye scheme
5 the market price of the company’s shares was 4535 pence on 31 march
2008 and ranged from 3950 pence to 5695 pence during the year 
6 no options were granted in the period
7  on 2 april 2008 ian adamson exercised options over 5527 ordinary shares
of 10 pence in the company  granted at 208 0 pence per share on 17 april
2008 garry w atts exercised options over 399 7 ordinary shares of 10 pence
in the company granted at 237 0 pence per share both exercises were in
respect of the ssl sharesave scheme an saye scheme 45
performance share plan
as at awarded in lapsed in as at vesting
note 310307 the period the period 310308 date
g watts
1 171880 — — 171880 110808
2 187876 — — 187876 090609
3 — 130627 — 130627 250610
total 359756 130627 — 490383
i adamson
1 79279 — — 79279
2 87734 — — 87734 090609
3 — 69979 — 69979 250610
total 167013 69979 — 236992
m moran
1 79279 — — 79279 110808
2 87734 — — 87734 090609
3 — 62981 — 62981 250610
total 167013 62981 — 229994
notes
1 the vesting of this award is subject to the following earnings per share
growth over a period of three years commencing on 1 april 2005 
average annual eps growth percentage of performance share award 
that vests
 rpi  15 per cent none
rpi  15 per cent ie 45 per cent over three years 15
rpi  30 per cent or more ie 90 per cent over three years 100
between the above points pro rata between 15 and 100
this condition has been met in full
the market price on date of award was 2915 pence the award price 
was 29090 pence being the average of the middle market quotations 
for an ssl share derived from the official list of the ukla for the five
consecutive dealing days immediately preceding the date of award
2 the vesting of this award is subject to the following earnings per share
growth over a period of three years commencing on 1 april 2006 
average annual eps growth percentage of performance share award 
that vests
 rpi  10 per cent none
rpi  10 per cent ie 30 per cent over three years 15
rpi  20 per cent or more ie 60 per cent over three years 100
between the above points pro rata between 15 and 100
the market price on date of award was 2795 pence the award price was
282 1 pence being the average of the middle market quotations for an ssl
share derived from the official list of the ukla for the five consecutive
dealing days immediately preceding the date of award
3 the vesting of this award is subject to the following combination of
earnings per share growth and economic value added over a period 
of three years commencing on 1 april 2007  
earnings per share growth for onethird of the number of shares subject
to the award 
average annual eps growth percentage of performance share award 
that vests
below rpi  7 per cent none
rpi  7 per cent ie 21 per cent over three years 5
rpi  12 per cent ie 36 per cent over three years 167
rpi  17 per cent ie 51 per cent over three years 333
between the above points pro rata between 5 and 333
economic value added ‘eva’ for twothirds of the number of shares
subject to the award
aggregate eva percentage of performance share award that vests
below £90 million none
£90 million 10
£100 million 333
£110 million 667
between the above points pro rata between 10 and 667
the market price on date of award was 427 25 pence the award price was
4287 pence being the average of the middle market quotations for an ssl
share derived from the official list of the ukla for the five consecutive
dealing days immediately preceding the date of award
performance graph
the graph shows the company’s t otal shareholder return performance
compared with that of the ftse 350 index this index was selected as an
appropriate comparator index because it is a broad equity market index of
which ssl is a constituent
peter read
chairman of the remuneration committee
19 may 2008
350
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
t otal shareholder return £ ftse 350 index
ssl international
mar 03 mar 04 mar 05 mar 06 mar 07 mar 08
this graph looks at the value by 31 march 2008 of £100 invested in ssl international 
on 31 march 2003 compared with the value of £100 invested in the ftse 350 index 
the other points plotted are the values at intervening financial yearends
source thompson financial 46 governance 
• financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008
the directors are responsible for preparing the annual report and the
group and parent company financial statements in accordance with
applicable law and regulations 
company law requires the directors to prepare group and parent
company financial statements for each financial year under that law they are
required to prepare the group financial statements in accordance with ifrss
as adopted by the eu and applicable law and have elected to prepare the
parent company financial statements in accordance with uk accounting
standards and applicable law uk generally accepted accounting practice  
the group financial statements are required by law and ifrss as adopted
by the eu to present fairly the financial position and performance of the group
the companies act 1985 provides in relation to such financial statements that
references in the relevant part of that act to financial statements giving a true
and fair view are references to their achieving a fair presentation 
the parent company financial statements are required by law to give a
true and fair view of the state of affairs of the parent company
in preparing each of the group and parent company financial statements
the directors are required to 
—select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently 
—make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent
—for the group financial statements state whether they have been prepared
in accordance with ifrss as adopted by the eu 
—for the parent company financial statements state whether applicable 
uk accounting standards have been followed subject to any material
departures disclosed and explained in the parent company financial
statements and 
—prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is
inappropriate to presume that the group and the parent company will
continue in business 
the directors are responsible for keeping proper accounting records 
that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of
the parent company and enable them to ensure that its financial statements
comply with the companies act 1985 they have general responsibility for
taking such steps as are reasonably open to them to safeguard the assets 
of the group and to prevent and detect fraud and other irregularities 
under applicable law and regulations the directors are also responsible
for preparing a directors’ report directors’ remuneration report and corporate
governance statement that comply with that law and those regulations 
the directors are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the
corporate and financial information included on the company’s website
legislation in the uk governing the preparation and dissemination of financial
statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions
responsibility statement of the directors in respect of the annual
financial report
we confirm that to the best of our knowledge
—the financial statements prepared in accordance with the applicable set 
of accounting standards give a true and fair view of the assets liabilities
financial position and profit or loss of the company and the undertakings
included in the consolidation taken as a whole and
—the directors’ report chairman’s statement chief executive’s review 
and performance review includes a fair review of the development and
performance of the business and the position of the issuer and the
undertakings included in the consolidation taken as a whole together 
with a description of the principal risks and uncertainties that they face
m moran
director 
g watts
director
19 may 2008
statement of directors’
responsibilities in respect 
of the annual report and 
the financial statements  47
basis of audit opinion 
we conducted our audit in accordance with international standards 
on auditing uk and ireland issued by the auditing practices board an audit
includes examination on a test basis of evidence relevant to the amounts 
and disclosures in the financial statements and the part of the directors’
remuneration report to be audited it also includes an assessment of the
significant estimates and judgements made by the directors in the preparation
of the financial statements and of whether the accounting policies are
appropriate to the group’s and company’s circumstances consistently
applied and adequately disclosed 
we planned and performed our audit so as to obtain all the information
and explanations which we considered necessary in order to provide us with
sufficient evidence to give reasonable assurance that the financial statements
and the part of the directors’ remuneration report to be audited are free 
from material misstatement whether caused by fraud or other irregularity 
or error in forming our opinion we also evaluated the overall adequacy of the
presentation of information in the financial statements and the part of the
directors’ remuneration report to be audited 
opinion 
in our opinion 
—the group financial statements give a true and fair view in accordance 
with ifrss as adopted by the eu of the state of the group’s affairs as at 
31 march 2008 and of its loss for the year then ended 
—the group financial statements have been properly prepared in accordance
with the companies act 1985 and article 4 of the ias regulation 
—the parent company financial statements give a true and fair view in
accordance with uk generally accepted accounting practice of the state 
of the parent company’s affairs as at 31 march 2008
—the parent company financial statements and the part of the directors’
remuneration report to be audited have been properly prepared in
accordance with the companies act 1985 and
—the information given in the directors’ report is consistent with the financial
statements
kpmg audit plc 
chartered accountants 
registered auditor 
8 salisbury square
london ec4y 8bb
19 may 2008
independent auditors’ 
report to the members 
of ssl international plc 
we have audited the group and parent company financial statements
the ‘financial statements’ of ssl international plc for the year ended 
31 march 2008 which comprise the consolidated income statement the
consolidated and parent company balance sheets the consolidated
statement of cash flows the consolidated statement of recognised income
and expense and the related notes these financial statements have been
prepared under the accounting policies set out therein we have also audited
the information in the directors’ remuneration report that is described as
having been audited 
this report is made solely to the company’s members as a body in
accordance with section 235 of the companies act 1985 our audit work has
been undertaken so that we might state to the company’s members those
matters we are required to state to them in an auditors’ report and for no 
other purpose t o the fullest extent permitted by law we do not accept or
assume responsibility to anyone other than the company and the company’s
members as a body for our audit work for this report or for the opinions we
have formed 
respective responsibilities of directors and auditors 
the directors’ responsibilities for preparing the annual report and 
the group financial statements in accordance with applicable law and
international financial reporting standards ifrss as adopted by the eu 
and for preparing the parent company financial statements and the directors’
remuneration report in accordance with applicable law and uk accounting
standards uk generally accepted accounting practice are set out in the
statement of directors’ responsibilities on page 46 
our responsibility is to audit the financial statements and the part of the
directors’ remuneration report to be audited in accordance with relevant 
legal and regulatory requirements and international standards on auditing 
uk and ireland 
we report to you our opinion as to whether the financial statements give 
a true and fair view and whether the financial statements and the part of the
directors’ remuneration report to be audited have been properly prepared in
accordance with the companies act 1985 and as regards the group financial
statements article 4 of the ias regulation we also report to you whether in
our opinion the information given in the directors’ report is consistent with
the financial statements the information given in the directors’ report includes
that information presented in the chairman’s statement chief executive’s
review and performance review that is cross referenced from the business
review section of the directors’ report 
in additionwe report to you if  in our opinion the company has not kept
proper accounting records if we have not received all the information and
explanations we require for our audit or if information specified by law
regarding directors’ remuneration and other transactions is not disclosed 
we review whether the corporate governance statement reflects the
company’s compliance with the nine provisions of the 2006 frc combined
code specified for our review by the listing rules of the financial services
authority and we report if it does not we are not required to consider whether
the board’s statements on internal control cover all risks and controls or 
form an opinion on the effectiveness of the group’s corporate governance
procedures or its risk and control procedures 
we read the other information contained in the annual report and
consider whether it is consistent with the audited financial statements we
consider the implications for our report if we become aware of any apparent
misstatements or material inconsistencies with the financial statements 
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2008 2008 2008 2007
oneoff charges before
t otal note 2 oneoff charges total
note £m £m £m £m
revenue 6 5339 — 5339 480 2
cost of sales 2509 372 2137 1957
gross profitloss 2830 372 3202 2845
distribution expenses 1647 14 1633 1449
administrative expenses 915 27 888 853
operating profitloss 62 268 413 681 543
financial income 3 114 — 114 120
financial expenses 3 273 52 221 212
net financing costs 3 159 52 107 92
share of profit of associates net of tax 9 — — — 18
profitloss before taxation 109 465 574 469
income tax expenseincome 4 118 43 161 131
lossprofit for the financial year 6 09 422 413 338
attributable to
equity holders of the parent 29 325
minority interest 19 20 13
lossprofit for the financial year 09 338
basic lossearnings per share pence 5 15 171
diluted lossearnings per share pence 5 15 170
financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 48
consolidated income statement
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49
2008 2007
note £m £m
assets
property plant and equipment 7 664 628 
goodwill and intangible assets 8 1179 992 
deferred tax assets 4 303 317 
investments 9 10 — 
other receivables 11 26 27 
t otal noncurrent assets 2182 1964 
inventories 10 915 845 
t rade and other receivables 11 1759 1471 
current tax asset 11 10 
cash and cash equivalents 12 446 403 
t otal current assets 3131 2729 
t otal assets 5313 4693 
liabilities
t rade and other payables 13 1380 1174 
financial liabilities 15 1428 554 
provisions 16 260 30 
current tax payable 14 50 56 
t otal current liabilities 3118 1814 
financial liabilities 15 08 739 
deferred tax liabilities 4 99 86 
employee benefits 17 537 694 
provisions 16 102 101 
t ax payable 14 188 187 
other payables 13 08 08 
t otal noncurrent liabilities 942 1815 
t otal liabilities 4060 3629 
net assets 1253 1064 
equity
issued capital 19 191 190 
share premium and merger reserve 19 1808 1800 
cumulative foreign exchange reserve 19 208 10 
cash flow hedge reserve 19 07 — 
retained earnings 19 1062 1004 
t otal equity attributable to equity holders of the parent 1138 976 
minority interest 19 115 88 
t otal equity 1253 1064 
the financial statements on pages 48 to 95 were approved by the board of directors on 19 may 2008 and were signed on its behalf by
m moran 
director
consolidated balance sheet
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financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 50
2008 2007
note £m £m
actuarial gains on defined benefit plans 17 112 174
restriction of defined benefit plan surplus 17 27 —
effective portion of cash flow hedges transferred to cash flow hedge reserve 07 —
currency translation differences on foreign currency net investments 3 218 55
t axation on gains and losses recognised directly in equity 4 18 59
income and expense recognised directly in equity 278 60
lossprofit for the financial year 09 338
t otal recognised income and expense for the year 19 269 398
attributable to
—equity holders of the parent 19 249 385
—minority interest 19 20 13
269 398
consolidated statement of recognised income and expense
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2008 2007
note £m £m
cash flows from operating activities
lossprofit for the financial year 09 338 
adjustments for
depreciation 7 65 102 
amortisation of intangibles 8 23 09 
impairment of goodwill 8 — 20 
sharebased payment charge 18 34 23 
interest income 3 114 120 
interest expense before oneoff charges 3 221 212 
share of profit of associate 9 — 18 
oneoff charges 465 — 
loss on sale of property plant and equipment 02 14 
t otal income tax expense 4 118 131 
operating profit before changes in working capital and provisions 805 711 
increase in trade and other receivables 88 85 
decrease in inventories 10 05 
increase in trade and other payables 122 52 
decrease in provisions and employee benefits 320 189 
cash generated from the operations 529 494 
interest paid 118 89 
income taxes paid 109 60 
dividend paid to minority interests 19 — 02 
net cash from operating activities 302 343 
cash flows from investing activities
proceeds from sale of plant and equipment 02 01 
interest received 09 08 
acquisition of property plant and equipment 76 55 
acquisition of investment 9 10 —
acquisition of intangible assets 16 29 
acquisition of businesssubsidiary 89 153 136 
payment of deferred consideration — 08 
net cash from investing activities 244 219 
cash flows from financing activities
proceeds from issue of share capital 19 09 17 
new drawdowns on bank loans 804 150 
repayments of loan notes 674 83 
payment of finance lease liabilities 21 03 07 
dividends 20 133 124 
net cash from financing activities 03 47 
net increase in cash and cash equivalents 61 77 
cash and cash equivalents and bank overdraft at start of year 271 208 
effect of exchange rate fluctuations on cash held 21 05 14 
cash and cash equivalents and bank overdraft at end of year 12 337 271
51
consolidated statement of cash flows
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financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 52
notes to the consolidated financial statements
1 group accounting policies
in the financial statements and related notes the term ‘company’ 
refers to ssl international plc a company incorporated in the uk the group
financial statements consolidate those of the company and its subsidiaries
together referred to as the ‘group’ or ‘ssl’ and equity account the group’s
interest in associates
a basis of preparation
the consolidated financial statements are prepared on a going concern
basis in pounds sterling rounded to the nearest hundred thousand and 
are prepared on a historical cost basis modified to include revaluation to 
fair value of certain financial instruments as described below the group
financial statements have been prepared and approved by the directors 
in accordance with international financial reporting standards as adopted
by the eu ‘adopted ifrs’ the company has elected to prepare its parent
company financial statements in accordance with uk gaap these are
presented on pages 88 to 94 the accounting policies set out below have
been applied consistently in dealing with items which are considered
material in relation to the financial statements except as noted below
in these financial statements the following new standards have been
adopted for the first time
ifrs 7 ‘financial instruments disclosures’ the disclosure requirements
detailed in this standard have been included in the notes to the consolidated
financial statements adoption of this standard has not necessitated any
changes to accounting policy nor had any impact upon the results or net
assets of the group further information on financial instruments is provided
in notes 15 22 and 23
ifric 8 ‘scope of ifrs 2 sharebased payment’ the interpretation
provides guidance on accounting for sharebased payment transactions
when the fair value of the identifiable goods or services received is less than
the fair value of the sharebased payment adoption of this standard had no
impact on the results or net assets of the group
ifric 9 ‘reassessment of embedded derivatives the interpretation
states that reassessment of whether an embedded derivative should be
separated from the underlying host contract should be made only when
there are changes to the contract adoption of this standard had no impact
on the results or net assets of the group
ifric 11 ifrs 2 ‘group and t reasury share t ransactions’ the instrument
provides guidance on whether specific transactions should be accounted 
for as equitysettled or as cashsettled and accounting for sharebased
payment arrangements involving two or more entities in the same group
adoption of this standard had no impact upon the results or net assets of 
the group
ssl’s management considers the following to be the most important
accounting policies in the context of the group’s operations
b basis of consolidation
the group financial statements consist of the financial statements of
the company entities controlled by the company its subsidiaries and the
group’s share of interests in associates
subsidiaries
subsidiaries are entities controlled by the group control exists when 
the group has the power either directly or indirectly to govern the financial
and operating policies of an entity so as to obtain benefits from its activities
the financial statements of subsidiaries are included in the consolidated
financial information from the date control commences until the date that
control ceases
where the reporting date of the subsidiary undertaking differs from 
that of the group the group’s share of results included in the consolidated
income statement is based on rolled forward information which coincides
with the group’s reporting date
associates
an associate is an undertaking in which the group has a longterm interest
usually from 20 per cent to 50 per cent of the equity voting rights over 
which it has the power to exert significant influence but not control over the
financial and operating policy decisions the group’s share of results of its
associates is included in the consolidated income statement on the equity
accounting basis from the date that significant influence commences until
the date that significant influence ceases the holding value of associates in
the group’s balance sheet is calculated by reference to the group’s cost of
investment plus postacquisition changes in the group’s share of the net
assets of the entity less any impairment in value the carrying value of
investments in associates includes any acquired goodwill
where the reporting date of the associated undertaking differs from 
that of the group the group’s share of results included in the consolidated
income statement is based on rolled forward information which coincides
with the group’s reporting date
t ransactions eliminated on consolidation
intragroup balances and any unrealised gains and losses or income 
and expenses arising from intragroup transactions are eliminated in
preparing the consolidated financial statements unrealised gains arising
from transactions with associates are eliminated to the extent of the 
group’s interest in the entity unrealised losses are eliminated in the same
way as unrealised gains but only to the extent that there is no evidence 
of impairment
c use of estimates and judgements
the preparation of the financial statements requires management to
make judgements estimates and assumptions that affect the application 
of the accounting policies and the reported amounts of assets liabilities
income and expenses actual results may differ from these estimates
estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing
basis revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in
which the estimate is revised and in any future periods affected
in particular information about significant areas of estimation
uncertainty and critical judgements in applying accounting policies that 
have the most significant effect on the amount recognised in the financial
statements are described in the following notes
note 4 — income tax expense
note 8 — intangible assets
note 15 — financial liabilities
note 16 — provisions for liabilities
note 17 — postretirement benefits
note 18 — employee costs and share option plans for employees
d revenue
revenue represents the fair value of consideration receivable being 
the value of goods provided during the year net of trade discounts cash
discounts retrospective and other rebates value added and sales taxes
revenue from the sale of goods is recognised upon transfer to the customer
of significant risks and rewards of ownership generally this will be when
goods are dispatched to the customer credit note reserves are provided at
each period end to account for management estimates of customer returns
and are deducted from revenue any returns in excess of the amount
provided would also be deducted from revenue
e business combinations and goodwill
goodwill arising on the acquisition of subsidiary undertakings and
businesses representing any excess of the fair value of the consideration given
over the fair value of the identifiable assets liabilities and contingent liabilities
acquired is capitalised and is subject to impairment review annually and when
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53
on the subsequent disposal or termination of a business acquired since
1 march 1998 the profit or loss on disposal or termination is calculated after
charging the carrying value of any related goodwill 
prior to transition to ifrs goodwill was amortised in line with uk gaap
on transition to ifrs the goodwill balance was frozen
the group’s policy up to and including the year ended 28 february 1998
was to write off goodwill arising upon acquisition against reserves under ifrs 1
and ifrs 3 such goodwill will remain eliminated against reserves and will not
form part of any subsequent profitloss on disposal
f other intangible assets
intangible assets that are acquired which can be separately identified
and the cost of which can be measured reliably are capitalised and
amortised on a straightline basis over their estimated useful economic lives
subject to any recognised impairment in value usually between 3—20 years
in determining the useful economic life each asset is reviewed separately
and consideration given to the period over which the group expects to derive
economic benefit from the asset the useful economic life for significant
assets is reviewed annually
where an asset is deemed to have an indefinite useful economic life it is
not amortised but is instead subject to annual impairment review to ensure
the carrying value of the asset is supportable
g impairment
financial assets
a financial asset is assessed at each reporting date to determine
whether there is any objective evidence that it is impaired a financial asset 
is considered to be impaired if objective evidence indicates that one or more
events have had a negative effect on the estimated future cash flows of that
asset all impairment losses are recognised in profit or loss
nonfinancial assets
the carrying value of the group’s nonfinancial assets other than
inventories and deferred tax assets are reviewed at each reporting date 
to determine whether there is any indication of impairment if any such
indication exists then the asset’s recoverable amount is estimated for
goodwill and intangible assets that have indefinite lives the recoverable
amount is estimated at each reporting date
an impairment loss is recognised if the carrying amount of an asset or 
its cashgenerating unit exceeds its recoverable amount a cashgenerating
unit is the smallest identifiable asset group that generates cash flows that
largely are independent from other assets and groups impairment losses 
are recognised in profit or loss impairment losses recognised in respect of
cashgenerating units are allocated first to reduce the carrying value of any
goodwill allocated to the units and then to reduce the carrying amount of 
the other assets in the unit group of units on a pro rata basis
the recoverable amount of an asset or cashgenerating unit is the
greater of its value in use and its fair value less costs to sell in assessing value
in use the estimated future cash flows are discounted to their present value
using a pretax discount rate that reflects current market assessments of 
the time value of money and the risks specific to the asset
an impairment loss in respect of goodwill is not reversed in respect of
other assets impairment losses recognised in prior periods are assessed at
each reporting date for any indications that the loss has decreased or no
longer exists an impairment loss is reversed if there has been a change in
estimates used to determine the recoverable amount an impairment loss is
reversed only to the extent that the asset’s carrying amount does not exceed
the carrying amount that would have been determined net of depreciation
or amortisation if no impairment loss had been recognised
h property plant and equipment
property  plant and equipment assets are carried at cost less accumulated
depreciation and any recognised impairment in value depreciation is
provided to write property plant and equipment down to a residual value
over their estimated useful economic lives on a straightline basis at the
following annual rates
freehold land — no depreciation is charged on freehold land
freehold and leasehold buildings — 2 per cent of cost or over the life of the
lease if less than 50 years
motor vehicles — 25 per cent of cost
plant equipment fixtures and fittings — 7 per cent to 25 per cent of cost
assets under the course of construction — no depreciation is charged on
assets under the course of construction
the residual value and estimated useful economic life for significant
property plant and equipment is reassessed annually
i leases
leases in terms of which the group assumes substantially all the risks
and rewards of ownership are classified as finance leases all other leases 
are accounted for as operating leases
assets held under finance leases are capitalised and included within
property plant and equipment at the lower of fair value and the present value
of minimum lease payments each asset is depreciated over the shorter of
the lease term or the asset’s useful life
the obligations related to finance leases net of finance lease charges in
respect of future periods are included within financial liabilities the interest
element of the rental agreement is charged to the income statement over
the term of the lease to reflect a constant rate of interest on the outstanding
capital amount payable
costs in respect of operating leases are charged to the income
statement on a straightline basis over the term of the lease lease incentives
are spread over the term of the lease
 j foreign currency transactions
t ransactions in foreign currencies are translated to the respective
functional currencies of group entities using the rate of exchange ruling at
the date of the transaction monetary assets and liabilities denominated in
foreign currencies are translated using the rate of exchange ruling at the
balance sheet date and the foreign exchange arising is taken to the income
statement
financial statements of foreign operations
income statements of foreign operations are translated into sterling 
at the average rate applicable to the respective accounting period as an
approximation of the rate at the date the transactions took place 
assets and liabilities including goodwill of foreign operations are
translated using the rate of exchange ruling at the balance sheet date gains
or losses on translations of foreign operations are included as a movement
on the cumulative foreign exchange reserve on a subsequent disposal such
gains or losses will form part of the profitloss on disposal within the income
statement gains and losses prior to adoption of ifrs are deemed to be nil
net investment in foreign operations
the portion of the gain or loss on an instrument used to hedge a net
investment in a foreign operation that is determined to be an effective
hedge is included as a movement in the cumulative foreign exchange
reserve on a subsequent disposal such gains or losses will form part of 
the profitloss on disposal within the income statement any ineffective
portion is recognised immediately in profit or loss ttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt
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financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 54
notes to the consolidated financial statements
continued
1 group accounting policies continued
k postretirement benefits
defined contribution plans
obligations for defined contribution plans are recognised as an expense
in the income statement when they are due
defined benefit plans
the group’s net obligation in respect of defined benefit pension plans 
is calculated separately for each plan by estimating the amount of future
benefits that employees have earned in return for their service in the current
and prior periods that benefit is discounted to determine its present value
and any unrecognised past service costs and the fair value of any plan assets
are deducted the discount rate is the yield at the reporting date on aa
creditrated bonds that have maturity dates approximating the terms of 
the group’s obligations the calculation is performed by a qualified actuary
using the projected unit credit method when the calculation results in a
benefit to the group the recognised asset is limited to the net total of any
unrecognised past service costs and the present value of any future refunds
from the plan or reductions in future contributions to the plan
when the benefits of a plan are improved the portion of the increased
benefit relating to past service by employees is recognised in the income
statement on a straightline basis over the average period until the benefits
become vested t o the extent that the benefits vest immediately the
expense is recognised immediately in the income statement
l employee benefits
sharebased payment transactions
the group operates a number of employee share schemes the fair
value of employee share options granted is recognised as an employee
expense with a corresponding increase in equity the fair value is measured
at grant date using an appropriate valuation model taking into account the
terms and conditions upon which the share options were granted these 
will include both performance and service conditions the resulting cost 
is charged to the income statement over the vesting period of the options 
at each balance sheet date the cumulative charge in respect of each option
plan is adjusted to reflect expected and actual levels of options vesting
the fair value of the amount payable to employees in respect of share
appreciation rights which are settled in cash is recognised as an expense
with a corresponding increase in liabilities over the period in which the
employees become unconditionally entitled to payment the liability is
remeasured at each reporting date and at settlement date any changes in
the fair value are recognised within the income statement as a personnel
expense
for options granted before 7 november 2002 the recognition and
measurement principles of ifrs 2 have not been applied in accordance with
the transitional provisions in ifrs 1 any cost in relation to these options is
expensed to the income statement as incurred
overseas termination benefits
the group’s net obligation in respect of termination benefits other than
pension plans is the amount of future benefit that employees have earned in
return for their service in current and prior periods that benefit is discounted
to determine the present value and the fair value of any related asset is
deducted the discount rate is the yield at the reporting date on aa credit
rated bonds that have maturity dates approximating the terms of the group’s
obligations the calculation is performed by a qualified actuary using the
projected unit credit method any actuarial gains or losses are recognised
directly in equity immediately
m research and development
research expenditure is charged to income in the year in which it is
incurred development expenditure is capitalised only if development 
costs can be measured reliably the product is technically and commercially
feasible future economic benefits are probable and the group intends to
and has sufficient resources to complete development and to sell the asset
other development expenditure is recognised in profit or loss as incurred
n cash equivalents
cash equivalents are current asset investments which are disposable
without curtailing or disrupting the business and are either readily convertible
into known amounts of cash at or close to their carrying values or traded in
an active market cash equivalents comprise shortterm bank deposits of
less than three months other than cash
o inventories
inventories are stated at the lower of cost and net realisable value in
determining the cost of raw materials consumables and goods for resale 
the fifo method is used and includes expenditure incurred in acquiring 
the inventories and bringing them to their existing location and condition 
for work in progress and finished goods cost is taken as production cost
which includes an appropriate proportion of overheads based upon normal
operating capacity
net realisable value is determined as estimated selling price less all
estimated costs of completion and costs to be incurred in marketing selling
and distribution
p grant income
revenue grants are recognised in the income statement as a reduction
in the related expense
capital grants are shown in deferred income within the balance sheet
and released to match the depreciation charge on the associated asset
q income tax
income tax comprises current and deferred tax income tax is
recognised in the income statement except to the extent that it relates to
items recognised directly in equity in which case it is recognised in equity
current tax is the expected tax payable on the taxable income for the
year using tax rates enacted or substantively enacted at the balance sheet
date and any adjustment to tax payable in respect of previous years
deferred tax is provided using the balance sheet liability method
providing for temporary differences between the carrying amounts of assets
and liabilities for financial reporting purposes and the amounts used for
taxation purposes the amount of deferred tax provided is based upon the
expected manner of realisation or settlement of the carrying values of the
assets or liabilities using tax rates enacted or substantively enacted at the
balance sheet date
deferred tax is not recognised for the following temporary differences
the intitial recognition of assets or liabilities in a transaction that is not a
business combination and that affects neither accounting nor taxable profit
and differences relating to investments and subsidiaries to the extent that it
is probable that they will not reverse in the foreseeable future in addition
deferred tax is not recognised for taxable temporary differences arising on
the initial recognition of goodwill
a deferred tax asset is recognised only to the extent that it is probable
that future taxable profits will be available against which the asset can be
utilised deferred tax assets are reduced to the extent that it is no longer
probable that sufficient taxable profits will be available to allow all or part 
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55
r provisions
a provision is recognised in the balance sheet when the group has a
present legal or constructive obligation as a result of a past event which can
be measured reliably and it is probable that an outflow of economic benefits
will be required to settle the obligation if the effect is material provisions are
determined by discounting the expected future cash flows at a pretax rate
that reflects current market assessments of the time value of money and the
risks specific to the liability
s financial instruments
the group uses derivative financial instruments derivatives to hedge
its exposure to foreign exchange and interest rate risks arising from operational
financing and investment activities the group does not hold or issue
derivative financial instruments for trading purposes
derivative financial instruments are recognised initially at fair value
subsequent to initial recognition derivative financial instruments are stated
at fair value the fair value of derivative financial instruments is determined
by reference to discounted cash flows or option valuation models where
derivatives do not qualify for hedge accounting any gains or losses on
remeasurement are immediately recognised in the income statement
where derivatives qualify for hedge accounting recognition of any resultant
gain or loss depends on the nature of the hedge relationship and the item
being hedged the effectiveness of hedges is tested at each period end to
ensure that the hedge remains effective
interestbearing borrowings are initially stated at fair value less
attributable transaction costs subsequent to initial recognition interest
bearing borrowings are stated at amortised cost with any difference between
cost and redemption value being recognised in the income statement over
the period of the borrowings on an effective interest basis
fair value hedging
derivative financial instruments are classified as fair value hedges when
they hedge the group’s exposure to changes in the fair value of a recognised
asset or liability any gain or loss from remeasuring the hedging instrument 
is recognised immediately in the income statement within financing costs
any change in the fair value of the hedged item attributable to the hedged
risk is adjusted against the carrying value of the hedged item and recognised
immediately in the income statement within financing costs
cash flow hedging
derivative financial instruments are classified as cash flow hedges 
when they hedge the group’s exposure to variability in cash flows that is
attributable to a particular risk associated with a recognised asset or liability 
changes in the fair value of the derivative hedging instrument designated
as a cash flow hedge are recognised directly in equity to the extent that the
hedge is effective t o the extent the hedge is ineffective changes in fair value
are recognised in profit or loss
discontinuance of hedge accounting
if the hedging instrument no longer meets the criteria for hedge
accounting expires or is sold terminated or exercised then hedge accounting
is discontinued prospectively  the cumulative gain or loss previously
recognised in equity remains there until the forecast transaction occurs when
the hedged item is a nonfinancial asset the amount recognised in equity is
transferred to the carrying amount of the asset when it is recognised in other
cases the amount recognised in equity is transferred to profit or loss in the
same period that the hedged item affects profit or loss
t t reasury shares
when share capital recognised as equity is repurchased the amount of
the consideration paid including directly attributable costs is recognised as
a change in equity repurchased shares are classified as treasury shares and
presented as a deduction from total equity
u investments 
investments in equity securities held by the group are classified as
available for sale financial assets and are stated at fair value where there is
no active market for unlisted shares held the investment is held at cost and
subject to annual impairment testing
accounting standards issued but not adopted
ifrs 8 ‘operating segments’ is effective for accounting periods
beginning on or after 1 january 2009 the standard specifies how an entity
should report information about its operating segments in annual financial
statements and sets out requirements for related disclosures about products
and services geographical areas and major customers adoption of this
standard will have no impact upon the results or net assets of the group ttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt
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2008 2007
note £m £m
operating profit before oneoff charges 681 543 
oneoff charges — european supply chain restructuring see below 413 — 
operating profit 268 543 
charges included above
—for depreciation on owned assets 7 64 101
—for depreciation on leased assets 7 01 01
—for amortisation of intangibles 8 23 09
—for impairment of goodwill 8 — 20
research costs 102 88
loss on sale of property plant and equipment 02 14
foreign exchange gainslosses in profit or loss excluding financial instruments 54 07
fees payable to kpmg and its associates
—audit of these financial statements 02 02 
—audit of financial statements of subsidiaries 05 05 
—other services relating to taxation 02 03 
—all other services 01 — 
t otal fees payable to kpmg and its associates 10 10 
fees payable to other audit firms 02 01 
amounts paid to the company’s auditor in respect of services to the company other than the audit of the company’s financial statements have not been
disclosed as the information is required instead to be disclosed on a consolidated basis
oneoff charges — european supply chain restructuring
on 27 september 2007  the group publicly announced its decision to close the spain manufacturing plant and transfer production to india and thailand
and to close the t echnical services centre in cambridge with its activities transferred to the technical centres at peterlee thailand and india the group also
committed to restructuring the footwear development group operations in spain and cambridge had ceased by 31 march 2008 the key uncertainties in
relation to these sites is the timing and final cost of addressing the surplus freehold and leasehold properties on these sites for which provisions remain at 
31 march 2008 transferred to the surplus property provision and the potential transfer of plant at the rubi site to other manufacturing facilities in china 
for which chinese government approval is required the restructuring of the footwear development group has been completed
on 28 february 2008 the group announced its decision to close the guernsey manufacturing facility with production to be transferred to the peterlee
facility or to thirdparty suppliers production at guernsey is anticipated to cease during the calendar year 2008 again the key uncertainty relating to this
closure is the timing and final cost of disposing of the surplus freehold and leasehold property on the site
a total provision of £413 million was made with regards to these restructuring projects relating to redundancies fixed asset writeoffs and other closure 
and restructuring costs the remaining provision at the balance sheet date after transfer of surplus property amounts to the surplus property provision is
£224 million cash outflows of £144 million have occurred as at 31 march 2008 and of the £224 million provision remaining £149 million of cash outflows
are anticipated it is expected that the majority of cash outflows will occur in the forthcoming 12 months although as noted above there is some uncertainty
regarding the period of time in which the group’s obligations in relation to surplus property can be discharged
in addition to the £413 million operational restructuring costs there were oneoff financial expenses of £52 million as detailed in note 3
financial statements 
• annual report and accounts 2008 56
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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3 financial income and expense
recognised in profit or loss
2008 2007
note £m £m 
financial income
bank and deposit interest 09 08 
expected return on pension scheme assets 17 105 94 
change in fair value of financial assets and liabilities designated at fair value through profit or loss — 18 
114 120 
financial expense
bank loans and overdraft 63 27 
loan notes 34 60 
finance leases — 01 
interest on pension scheme liabilities 17 124 124 
221 212 
oneoff financial expense  52 — 
273 212 
net financing costs recognised in profit or loss 159 92 
 finance charges of £52 million relate to penalties and charges arising on the early repayment of loan notes and early settlement of related derivative balances in october 2007 following the
announcement of the european supply chain restructuring programme
recognised directly in equity
2008 2007
£m £m 
foreign currency translation differences for foreign operations 218 55 
effective portion of changes in fair value of cash flow hedges 07 — 
net finance incomeexpense recognised directly in equity 211 55
4 income tax expense
t axation recognised in the income statement is as follows
before 2008 2007
oneoff oneoff
charges charges total total
£m £m £m £m
current tax expense
current year corporation tax 61 21 40 39 
overseas taxation 78 14 64 55 
adjustments in respect of prior years 02 — 02 18 
141 35 106 76 
deferred tax expense
origination and reversal of temporary differences 16 08 08 67 
adjustments in respect of prior years 04 — 04 12 
20 08 12 55 
t otal income tax expense in the income statement 161 43 118 131 
the effective tax rate for the period is 28 per cent on the profit before oneoff charges and tax and income from associates 2007 29 per cent the total
charge of £118 million 2007 £131 million includes a credit of £43 million relating to the oneoff charges 2007 £nil included within the overseas taxation 
is a benefit of £12 million arising from previously unrecognised deferred tax assets 2007 £05 million
deferred tax charged to the income statement in the year arises principally in respect of the origination and reversal of temporary differences no deferred
tax is recognised on the unremitted earnings of overseas subsidiaries and associates as the earnings are continually reinvested by the group and no tax is
expected to be payable on earnings in the forseeable future
the uk standard rate of corporation tax is 28 per cent from 1 april 2008 the effect of this is a reduction in the uk deferred tax asset of £08 million the total
effect on the group of changes in tax rates is £06 million
the phased abolition of industrial building allowances in the uk is anticipated to be enacted in the 2008 finance act the expected effect of this will be to
increase the deferred tax liability provided on accelerated capital allowances as at 31 march 2008 by approximately £1 million
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amounts taken to the consolidated statement of recognised income and expense are analysed as follows
2008 2007
£m £m 
current tax
t ax on foreign exchange gains and losses 07 — 
deferred tax
t ax movements in respect of defined benefit pension liability 25 59 
18 59 
amounts recognised directly in equity are analysed as follows
2008 2007
£m £m 
t ax movements in respect of employee costs and share option plans for employees 03 06 
factors affecting future tax charges
the group’s future tax charge depends on the levels and mix of profitability in different jurisdictions and the tax rates applied to those profits the table
below reconciles the current tax charge that would result from applying the uk rate of corporation tax to the group’s total profit before tax and associates 
to the total income tax charge
reconciliation of effective tax rate
2008 2007
£m £m 
profit before tax 109 469 
share of profits of associates net of taxation — 18 
t otal profit before tax 109 451 
notional taxation charge at uk corporation tax rate of 30 2007 30 33 135 
nondeductible expenses and income not taxable 47 05 
overseas losses not deductible 73 17 
elimination of intragroup profit 23 10 
adjustments in respect of prior years 07 30 
effect of tax rates in foreign jurisdictions 08 02 
overseas losses not previously recognised 12 05 
current year overseas tax losses utilised in prior periods 05 — 
t ax effect of change in tax rates 06 — 
other — 01 
118 131 
financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 58
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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balance sheet 
deferred taxation assetliability movement 
the amounts of deferred taxation accounted for in the group balance sheet and the movements therein comprised the following deferred tax liabilities 
and assets
balance at recognised recognised exchange balance at
1 april 2007 in income in equity differences 31 march 2008
£m £m £m £m £m
deferred tax liabilities
accelerated capital allowances 48 13 — — 61 
deferred capital gains 38 — — — 38 
86 13 — — 99 
deferred tax assets
defined benefit pension schemes 196 32 25 — 139 
capital losses carried forward 38 — — — 38 
sharebased payments 21 06 03 — 30 
intragroup profits in stock 28 24 — — 52 
other shortterm timing differences 34 04 — 06 44 
317 02 22 06 303 
unrecognised deferred tax assets 
deferred tax assets have not been recognised in respect of unused income tax losses of £1766 million 2007 £1736 million and unused capital losses of
£1420 million 2007 £1494 millionthe increase in income tax losses in the year of £30 million is explained by a foreign currency retranslation difference 
of £48 million on losses carried forward at 2007  net of a decrease in losses carried forward of £18 million
it is probable that future taxable profit will not be available against which the group can utilise the benefits therefrom included in the losses are us income
tax losses of usd 120 million 2007 usd 103 million which are unlikely to be available for use due to the change of ownership restrictions
£449 million 2007 £436 million of the income tax losses may be carried forward indefinitely the remaining losses held in overseas entities may expire
over periods of up to 20 years
5 lossearnings per £0 10 ordinary share
lossearnings per share has been calculated by dividing the lossprofit attributable to ordinary shareholders by the weighted average number of ordinary
shares in issue during the year
the lossprofit attributable to ordinary shareholders is as follows
2008 2007
£m £m 
lossprofit for the year 29 325 
for basic lossearnings per share 29 325 
the profit before oneoff charges for adjusted eps disclosed in the chairman’s statement and the performance review of the annual report is as follows
2008 2007
£m £m
lossprofit for the year as reported 29 325 
add back net impact of oneoff charges 422 — 
profit before oneoff charges for adjusted eps 393 325 
the calculation of diluted earnings per share uses basic earnings as defined above and the basic weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue during
the period adjusted as follows
2008 2007
w eighted average number of shares millions 
number of ordinary shares at start of year 1902 1899 
effect of shares issued in the year — share options exercised 04 03 
for basic and adjusted earnings per share 1906 1902 
dilutive effect of share options 18 07 
for diluted earnings per share 1924 1909 
the dilutive effect of share options is only considered when a loss is made to the extent that the dilutive effect increases the loss per share the diluted loss
per share for the year ended 31 march 2008 is therefore equal to the basic loss per share
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6 segment information
segment information is presented in the consolidated financial statements in respect of the group’s geographical segments which by location of assets 
are the primary basis for reporting the geographical segment reporting format reflects the group’s management and internal reporting structure
intrasegment pricing is determined on an arm’slength basis
segment results include items directly attributable to a segment as well as those that can be allocated on a reasonable basis
geographical segments
the group is comprised of the following main geographical segments
—united kingdom and continental europe
—americas
—asia pacific and rest of the world
continental europe includes sales offices and manufacturing units within any countries within the european continent
americas includes sales offices within any countries within the north and south american continents
asia pacific and the rest of the world includes sales offices and manufacturing units within any countries that are not within the european north american
and south american continents
geographical segments  
2008 2008 2007 2007
by location by location by location by location
of assets of customers of assets of customers
£m £m £m £m
segment revenue
external
—united kingdom and continental europe 4072 3982 3716 3578 
—americas 326 299 299 305 
—asia pacific and rest of the world 941 1058 787 919 
5339 5339 4802 4802 
intrasegment 
—united kingdom and continental europe 1680 1709 
—americas — —
—asia pacific and rest of the world 302 373 
— eliminations 1982 2082
t otal revenue 5339 5339 4802 4802 
revenue for the year ended 31 march 2008 includes £18 million from the vasyli business acquired in november 2007 see note 8 £05 million in the united
kingdom and continental europe and £13 million in asia pacific 2007 £25 million relating to the acquisition of the former associate in china the revenue
of the vasyli business for the period from 1 april 2007 until the date of acquisition is not available as financial information was not regularly compiled by the
vendors on a consolidated basis preacquisition
financial statements 
• annual report and accounts 2008 60
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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£m £m
segment result
— united kingdom and continental europe 465 439 
— americas 11 19 
— asia pacific and rest of the world 205 123 
consolidated segment result before oneoff charges 681 543 
oneoff charges 
 
— charged to operating profit 413 — 
consolidated operating profit 268 543 
consolidated segment result
share of profit of associates — 18 
net financing costs — before oneoff charges 107 92 
net financing costs — oneoff charges 52 — 
income tax — before oneoff charges 161 131 
income tax — oneoff charges 43 — 
lossprofit for the financial year 09 338 

oneoff charges relate to the united kingdom and continental europe geographical segment
 share of profit of associates relates wholly to operations based in the asia pacific and rest of the world geographical segment
operating profit for the year ended 31 march 2008 includes £06 million from the vasyli business acquired in november 2007  £02 million in the united
kingdom and continental europe and £04 million in asia pacific 2007 £14 million relating to the acquisition of the former associate in china the operating
profit of the vasyli business for the period from 1 april 2007 until the date of acquisition is not available as financial information was not regularly compiled by
the vendors on a consolidated basis preacquisition
2008 2008 2007 2007
£m £m £m £m
property plant intangible property plant intangible
and equipment amortisation and and equipment amortisation and
depreciation impairment depreciation impairment
segment noncash expenditure
— united kingdom and continental europe 46 23 89 29 
— americas 01 — 01 — 
— asia pacific and rest of the world 18 — 12 — 
65 23 102 29 
there was no other significant noncash expenditure of the group
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geographical segments  
2008 2008 2007 2007
£m £m £m £m
property plant property plant
and equipment intangible and equipment intangible
additions additions additions additions
segment additions
— united kingdom and continental europe 27 185 34 33 
— americas —— —— 
— asia pacific and rest of the world 49 — 26 172 
76 185 60 205 
2008 2007
£m £m
segment assets
— united kingdom and continental europe 4037 3558 
— americas 110 108 
— asia pacific and rest of the world 852 700 
— unallocated assets 314 327 
5313 4693 
segment liabilities
— united kingdom and continental europe 3436 3081 
— americas 62 66 
— asia pacific and rest of the world 225 153 
— unallocated liabilities 337 329 
4060 3629  
consolidated net assets 1253 1064 
business segments
business segments are the group’s secondary basis of reporting the business segments reported reflect the group’s internal management reporting format
2008 2007
£m £m
segment revenue
external
— branded condoms lubricants and devices 2177 1871 
— footwear 761 668 
— footcare 1136 1000 
— locally owned brands 714 723 
— other consumer 435 418 
— thirdparty supply 116 122 
t otal continuing revenue 5339 4802 
2008 2008 2007 2007
£m £m £m £m
segment capital segment capital
assets expenditure assets expenditure
external
— branded condoms lubricants and devices 1853 31 1317 27 
— footwear 460 11 452 03 
— footcare 883 16 804 14 
— locally owned brands 807 10 719 12 
— other consumer 210 06 179 03 
— thirdparty supply 123 02 149 01 
4336 76 3620 60 
— unallocated including taxation assets 977 — 1073 — 
t otal 5313 76 4693 60
financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 62
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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7  property plant and equipment
plant
land and equipment and
buildings motor vehicles total
£m £m £m 
cost 
at 1 april 2006 367 1363 1730 
additions 06 54 60 
acquisition of former associate — 11 11 
disposals 04 97 101 
exchange adjustments 06 23 29 
at 31 march 2007 and 1 april 2007 363 1308 1671 
additions 14 62 76 
disposals 01 348 349 
exchange adjustments 12 76 88 
at 31 march 2008 388 1098 1486 
depreciation and impairment 
at 1 april 2006 56 975 1031 
charge for the year 09 93 102 
disposals 02 69 71 
exchange adjustments 02 17 19 
at 31 march 2007 and 1 april 2007 61 982 1043 
charge for the year 09 56 65 
disposals — 346 346 
exchange adjustments 03 57 60
at 31 march 2008 73 749 822 
carrying amounts 
at 1 april 2006 311 388 699 
at 31 march 2007 and 1 april 2007 302 326 628 
at 31 march 2008 315 349 664 
capital expenditure on plant equipment and motor vehicles in the year of £62 million comprised £0 1 million of capitalised finance leases 2007 £02 million
included within plant equipment and motor vehicles are assets held under finance lease with a net book value of £02 million 2007 £02 million 
the carrying value of temporarily idle plant at the year end is £nil 2007 £nil 
group assets held under course of construction total £16 million 2007 £14 million of which £16 million 2007 £11 million is included in plant equipment
and motor vehicles
as units are transferred onto sap fully written down assets are removed from the system this is the main driver of the high level of disposals during the year
the remainder of assets held under construction is £nil 2007 £03 million the net book value of land and buildings is analysed as follows
2008 2007
£m £m 
freeholds 148 138 
leasehold improvements 165 162 
long leasehold 02 02 
315 302 
the charge for depreciation for the year is recognised as follows in the income statement 
2008 2007
£m £m 
cost of sales 32 47 
distribution expenses 01 01 
administrative expenses 32 54 
65 102
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8 intangible assets
goodwill scholl brand other total
£m £m £m £m 
cost 
at 1 april 2006 221 603 334 1158 
additions — — 33 33 
goodwill arising on acquisition of former associate 172 — — 172 
exchange adjustments 01 01 01 01 
at 31 march 2007 and 1 april 2007 394 602 366 1362 
additions 128 — 57 185 
exchange adjustments 23 06 12 41 
at 31 march 2008 545 608 435 1588 
amortisation and impairment losses 
at 1 april 2006 92 — 249 341 
charge for the year — — 09 09 
impairment charge 20 — — 20 
at 31 march 2007 and 1 april 2007 112 — 258 370 
charge for the year — — 23 23 
exchange adjustments 08 — 08 16 
at 31 march 2008 120 — 289 409 
carrying amounts 
at 1 april 2006 129 603 85 817 
at 31 march 2007 282 602 108 992 
at 31 march 2008 425 608 146 1179 
amortisation and impairment charges are recognised within administrative expenses within the income statement the impairment charge in the prior year
related to the impairment of goodwill relating to the remegel locally owned brand following a review of the recoverable amount based on discounted future
cash flows expected to be generated from continued use of the brand the key assumptions used in the review were that future revenue would decline by 
88 per cent per annum and operating margins by 2 per cent per annum results were projected forwards for 12 years and discounted to present value using
risk adjusted discount factor of 68 per cent
for the purposes of impairment testing of goodwill the group is regarded as several cashgenerating units one for each component of goodwill recognised
at the balance sheet date and one for all other consumer products the cashgenerating units’ recoverable amounts are based on value in use using
projections of the group’s performance over 10—15 years periods reflecting the directors’ best estimates of the cash flows risk adjusted discount factors 
of 68 per cent—7 8 per cent have been applied to the projections
material assets 
scholl brand 
the scholl brand with a carrying value of £608 million at 31 march 2008 is not amortised the brand has been tested for impairment using the method
described below no charge for impairment was required in the year
for the purposes of impairment testing of the scholl brand the group is regarded as two cashgenerating units that part relating to scholl branded products
and that relating to all other consumer products the scholl brand’s recoverable amount was determined by discounting future cash flows expected to be
generated from continuing use of the brand using the following key assumptions
— cash flows for year one were based upon budgeted operating results
— revenue growth was anticipated at 2 per cent per annum and operating results held at a constant percentage of revenue for a further period of nine years
this is in line with experience in prior years
— operating results were then held at the year ten figures into perpetuity reflecting the directors’ assertion that the brand has an indefinite useful economic
life based upon its proven value over long periods and its position in the market which is considered sustainable for the foreseeable future
— a risk adjusted discount factor of 68 per cent was applied to the projections
for the scholl brand to be be impaired with all other assumptions held constant the risk adjusted discount factor would need to increase to 22 per cent
before the brand’s value in use calculation showed any impairment removing the revenue growth from the expected cash flows would decrease the
valuation by £25 million however the brand would still show no impairment a decrease in the operating margin percentage by one percentage point would
reduce the valuation by £34 million however the brand would still show no impairment 
financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 64
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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goodwill arising on acquisition of qingdao london durex company limited ‘china goodwill’ 
goodwill of £17 2 million arose on the acquisition of the remaining 50 per cent of the ordinary share capital of qingdao london durex company limited in
january 2007 as detailed in note 9
for the purposes of impairment testing of the china goodwill qingdao london durex company limited was identified as a single cashgenerating unit 
the recoverable amount was determined by discounting future cash flows expected to be generated from continuing use of the goodwill using the following
key assumptions
— cash flows for year one were based upon budgeted operating results
— revenue growth was anticipated at 3 per cent per annum and operating results held at a constant percentage of revenue for a further period of nine years 
— operating results were then held at the year ten figures into perpetuity reflecting the expected maintenance of the position in the market
— a risk adjusted discount factor of 7 8 per cent was applied to the projections
for the china goodwill to be be impaired with all other assumptions held constant the risk adjusted discount factor would need to increase to 60 per cent
before the value in use calculation showed any impairment removing the revenue growth from the expected cash flows would decrease the valuation by
£26 million however the goodwill would still show no impairment a decrease in the operating margin percentage by one percentage point would reduce the
valuation by £17 million however the goodwill would still show no impairment 
vasyli goodwill 
an impairment review has been performed at 31 march 2008 in relation to the goodwill of £128 million arising on the acquisition of the vasyli business in
november 2007 see below the vasyli business encompassing consumer sales of the orthaheel orthastyle vasyli and vas brands across the group 
was identified as a single cashgenerating unit the recoverable amount was determined by discounting future cash flows expected to be generated from
continuing use of the goodwill using the following key assumptions
— cash flows for year one were based upon budgeted operating results
— revenue growth was anticipated at 3 per cent per annum for the first 10 years nil thereafter and operating results held at a constant percentage of revenue
— operating results were then held at the year 10 figures for a further 10 years reflecting the current expected useful life of the goodwill and related brands
— a risk adjusted discount factor of 7 8 per cent was applied to the projections
for the vasyli goodwill to be be impaired with all other assumptions held constant the risk adjusted discount factor would need to increase to 27 per cent
before the value in use calculation showed any impairment removing the revenue growth from the expected cash flows would decrease the valuation by
£7 4 million however the goodwill would still show no impairment a decrease in the operating margin percentage by one percentage point would reduce the
valuation by £08 million however the goodwill would still show no impairment 
the remaining goodwill is made up of a number of balances none of which are significant with a total net book value of £125 million impairment reviews have
been performed in respect of all balances held
other intangible assets comprise a number of nonmaterial cashgenerating units
business combination
on 7 november 2007  the group acquired the business and certain business assets of vasyli australia pty ltd vasyli nz limited and vasyli uk limited
together ‘vasyli’ in europe and asia the main assets being the orthaheel orthastyle vasyli and vas brands the initial cash consideration was 
aus329 million the total consideration could increase to aus749 million if certain sales growth targets are attained with the balance payable in 
june 2010 further detail of the contingent consideration recognised is provided in note 16 this transaction has been accounted for by the purchase 
method of accounting
book value fair value
£m £m
net assets acquired
brands and related intellectual property rights — 28
customer relationships — 08
inventories 03 03
goodwill — 128
t otal consideration 03 167
satisfied by
cash 149
contingent consideration 14
directly attributable costs 04
167
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recognition of intangible assets
intangible assets were not separately identified or recorded in the underlying records of the acquired business on acquisition the group identified several
intangible assets including the brand names acquired and their related intellectual property rights and customer relationships t wo patents were also acquired
as part of the business assets although they relate to only two countries have relatively short expiry periods and relate to relatively old technology their fair
value is therefore calculated as £nil the brand and intellectual property rights are being amortised over 20 years and the customer relationships over a
period of between three and five years
the goodwill arising on the acquisition of the vasyli business is attributable to the anticipated profitability of the distribution of the vasyli products in new
markets using the group’s existing distribution channels for example across the rest of europe and asia and the expected future operating synergies arising
from the integration of the vasyli business with that of scholl footcare the goodwill will be subject to annual impairment reviews
the vasyli businesses contributed £18 million revenue and £06 million to the group’s profit before tax for the period between the date of acquisition and the
balance sheet date it is not practicable to disclose what the contribution to group revenue and profits would have been had the acquisition been completed
on 1 april 2007  as the vendors did not prepare consolidated financial information for the aspects of the business acquired by the group
9  investments
investment in former associate
equity accounted shares
£m 
cost 
at 1 april 2006 20 
acquisition of former associate  20 
at 31 march 2007 and 31 march 2008 — 
share of postacquisition reserves less losses 
at 1 april 2006 05 
retained profits less losses 18 
dividends 20 
exchange adjustments 02 
acquisition of former associate 01 
at 31 march 2007 and 31 march 2008 — 
balance sheet value at 31 march 2007 and 31 march 2008 — 
balance sheet value at 1 april 2006 25 
 in january 2007  the group acquired the remaining 50 per cent of the ordinary share capital of qingdao london durex company limited incorporated in the peoples’ republic of china 
bringing the group’s total interest in that company to 100 per cent there are no investments in associates at 31 march 2008
the acquisition had the following effect on the group’s assets and liabilities at the acquisition date 
recognised
pre acquisition fair value value on
carrying amounts adjustments acquisition
£m £m £m 
property plant and equipment 11 — 11 
inventories 09 — 09 
cash and cash equivalents 56 — 56 
t rade and other payables 35 — 35 
current tax payable — — 
net identifiable assets and liabilities 41 — 41 
less amounts recognised as share of asssociate prior to acquisition 21 
goodwill on acquisition note 8 172 
consideration paid satisfied in cash 192 
less cash acquired 56 
net cash outflow 136 
 includes legal fees of £01 million 
the excess of fair value of consideration over the fair value of the assets acquired was attributed wholly to goodwill as the group supplies the brand and
knowhow to the business and existing customer relationships were terminated as part of the sale and purchase agreement 
financial statements 
• annual report and accounts 2008 66
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the goodwill acquired represents the benefits of securing control of the financial and operating policies of the business this is expected to lead to increased
profits as a result of the establishment of new distributor relationships at higher margins to those achieved previously and the opportunity to establish the
scholl brand alongside durex in this key market in time the acquisition will also provide synergies to the group’s manufacturing cost base by providing
additional condom manufacturing capacity to support the group supply chain the group has not recognised as part of the acquisition an asset in relation 
to the durex brand as the group already owned the brand worldwide prior to the acquisition 
other investments 
noncurrent investments
2008 2007
£m £m 
availableforsale financial assets 10 — 
the group holds a strategic noncontrolling interest of 11 per cent in sirius global solutions limited which is classified as a financial asset available for sale
sirius global solutions limited is an unquoted entity therefore fair value of the shareholding cannot be readily ascertained the investment is therefore held
at initial cost and subject to annual impairment review
10 inventories
2008 2007
£m £m 
raw materials and consumables 96 107 
stocks and work in progress 67 55 
finished goods and goods for resale 752 683 
at end of year 915 845 
t otal gross inventories 1016 935 
inventory provision 101 90 
915 845 
analysis of inventory provision movements in the year 
at beginning of year 90 81 
income statement charge 45 54 
amounts utilised 42 41 
exchange movements 08 04 
at end of year 101 90 
the amount of inventories recognised as an expense within cost of sales amounted to £1956 million 2007 £177 7 million
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2008 2007
£m £m 
current 
gross trade receivables 1607 1378 
less allowance for impairment 58 39 
1549 1339 
amount owed by associated undertakings — 01 
other prepayments and accrued income 90 62 
other receivables 115 66 
derivative financial assets 05 03 
1759 1471 
noncurrent
other receivables 26 27 
1785 1498 
allowance for impairment 
at beginning of year 39 66 
income statement charge 24 21 
amounts released in the year 01 07 
amounts utilised and other movements 09 36 
exchange movements 05 05 
at end of year 58 39 
current trade and other receivables include amounts due to be settled in sterling  euros us dollars chinese renminbi and other currencies noncurrent
receivables relate to sterling amounts due 
the group’s exposure to credit and currency risks are disclosed in note 22 
12  cash and cash equivalents 
2008 2007
note £m £m 
cash at bank 425 375 
shortterm deposits 21 28 
cash and cash equivalents per balance sheet 446 403 
overdrafts 15 109 132 
cash and cash equivalents per cash flow statement 337 271
cash and cash equivalents comprise cash held by the group and shortterm bank deposits with an original maturity of three months or less the carrying
amount of these assets approximates their fair value 
financial statements 
• annual report and accounts 2008 68
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2008 2007
£m £m 
current
t rade payables 711 525 
value added taxes payroll taxes and social security 58 37 
other payables and accruals 611 612 
1380 1174 
noncurrent  
other payables 08 08 
current trade and other payables principally comprise amounts outstanding for trade purchases and ongoing costs the average credit period taken for
trade purchases is 121 days 2007 98 days for the majority of suppliers no interest is charged on the trade payables the group has financial risk management
policies in place to ensure that all payables are paid within the credit time frame current payables include amounts due to be settled in sterling  euros us dollars
thai baht malaysian ringgit chinese renminbi and other currencies the directors consider that the carrying amount of trade payables approximates to
their fair value
the group’s exposure to currency risk related to trade and other payables is disclosed in note 22
14 tax payable
t ax payable represents the amount of income tax payable in respect of current and prior periods £50 million 2007 £ 56 million is expected to be paid
within the next 12 months £188 million 2007 £187 million is expected to be payable after more than 12 months 
15 financial liabilities
2008 2007
£m £m 
current liabilities 
overdrafts and unsecured facilities 109 132 
bank loans 1318 373 
loan notes — 31 
obligations under finance leases 01 02 
forward contract derivatives — 03 
interest rate and currency swaps — 13 
1428 554 
noncurrent liabilities  
bank loans — 02 
loan notes — 641 
obligations under finance leases — 01 
interest rate and currency swaps 08 95 
08 739 
t otal financial liabilities 1436 1293 
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t erms and debt repayment schedule 
31 march 2008 31 march 2007
nominal face carrying face carrying
interest year of value amount value amount
currency rate maturity £m £m £m £m  
overdrafts eur 0 2008 03 03 — — 
overdrafts eur 450 on demand 95 95 107 107 
overdrafts gbp 592—60 on demand 11 11 21 21 
overdrafts jpy 265 on demand — — 04 04 
current liabilities overdrafts and unsecured facilities 109 109 132 132 
group facility sterling drawdown gbp 608 2007 — — 300 300 
group facility japanese y en drawdown jpy 122 2007 — — 39 39 
group facility sterling drawdown gbp 621—629 2008 990 990 — — 
group facility sterling drawdown gbp 632 2009 100 100 — — 
group facility euro drawdown eur 489 2008 94 94 — — 
group facility japanese y en drawdown jpy 153 2008 46 46 — — 
italy loan unsecured eur 477 2008 88 88 34 34 
current liabilities bank loans 1318 1318 373 373 
unsecured noncurrent loan eur 0 2008 — — 02 02 
loan notes unsecured usd 802—819 2009 — — 613 613 
loan notes unsecured gbp 787 2014 — — 59 59 
t otal loan notes — — 672 672 
finance lease liabilities thb 261—875 2008—2010 01 01 03 03 
t otal interestbearing liabilities 1428 1428 1182 1182 
the financial instruments disclosures in note 23 detail the fair value hedge relationships between the group’s fixed rate loans and interest rate swaps and
cash flow hedge relationships between the group’s variable rate loans and interest rate swaps
the principal features of the group’s borrowings are as follows
bank overdrafts are repayable on demand overdrafts and facilities of £109 million 2007 £132 millon are unsecured the average effective interest rate 
on bank overdraft approximates 47 per cent 2007 6 per cent per annum
the group has the following bank facilities
— a syndicated group facility of £220 million available until january 2012 of which £123 million 2007 £339 million had been drawn down at 31 march 2008
drawdowns can be made for periods of one two three or six months or any other mutuallyagreed term interest rates are set at the corresponding libor
plus 50 basis points at the time of the drawdown
— ssl healthcare italia spa has fixed rate unsecured loans of £88 million which are rolled forward every three months 
— various overdraft facilities across the group including a uk facility of £7 5 million net
undrawn borrowing facilities 
at 31 march 2008 the group had available £97 million 2007 £2161 million of undrawn committed borrowing facilities in respect of which all conditions
precedent had been met
loan notes interest rate and currency swaps held as a fair value hedge 
the following table shows the carrying values of loan notes interest rate and currency swaps forming part of a fair value hedge relationship under ifrs
2008 2007
£m £m 
loan notes us 802 per cent guaranteed — 81 
currency swap us 802 per cent loan notes to euro 609 per cent fixed rate borrowing — 18 
interest rate swap euro 609 per cent fixed rate to euro variable rate borrowing — 02 
— 97 
financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 70
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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the loan notes interest rate and currency swaps held as a fair value hedge are carried at fair value under ifrs the hedge was in place to reduce exposure to
exchange rate fluctuations
the notional amount of the us 802 per cent guaranteed loan notes at 31 march 2007 was us152 million the us 802 per cent loan notes were issued in
november 1999 were repayable in six further equal instalments maturing in november 2009 and were not secured on any assets of the group the loan notes
were repaid early in october 2007  and the related swaps cancelled finance charges of £52 million relating to the change in the carrying amount of all loan
notes and related derivative balances on notification of the early repayment of the loan notes have been recognised in the year
the notional amount and payment terms of loan notes and swaps were equal the hedge effectiveness tested semiannually was effective during the 
period up until repayment in providing a hedge against fair value adjustments relating to interest rate changes the fair value charge in the year arising from
movements in interest rates was £nil 2007 £18 million credit
other loan notes interest rate and currency swaps 
2008 2007
£m £m 
loan notes sterling 7 87 per cent guaranteed — 59 
loan notes us 8 19 per cent guaranteed — 532 
currency swap us 8 19 per cent loan notes to sterling 7 69 per cent fixed rate borrowing — 92 
— 683 
the sterling 7 87 per cent and us 819 per cent guaranteed loan notes were held at amortised cost retranslated at spot rates the currency swap was held at
fair value at 31 march 2007 
the notional amount of the sterling 7 87 per cent loan notes at 31 march 2007 was £59 million the notional amount of the us 819 per cent loan notes at 
31 march 2007 was us1042 million the sterling loan notes were issued in november 1999 and were repayable in full in november 2014 the us loan notes
were issued in november 1999 and were repayable in full in november 2009 the loan notes were not secured on any assets of the group as noted above
all loan notes were repaid in october 2007 
the fair value of the 7 87 per cent guaranteed loan notes held at amortised cost at 31 march 2007 was £62 million the fair value of the 819 per cent loan
notes also held at cost at 31 march 2007 was £561 million
the notional amount and payment terms of loan notes and swaps were equal the loans and swaps do not constitute a fair value hedge consequently the
group was exposed to fair value changes from interest rate movements in the us and sterling these fair value changes resulted in a credit of £18 million 
in the income statement for the year ended 31 march 2007  the group’s exposure to fair value changes is considered further in note 23 as noted above 
the loan notes and related swaps were cancelled in october 2007 
bank loans and interest rate swaps held as a cash flow hedge 
2008 2007
£m £m 
£60 million sterling drawdown on group facility at 1 month libor 626—629 per cent 600 — 
interest rate swaps three month libor to fixed 546 per cent 08 — 
interest rate basis swaps three month libor to 1 month libor 01 — 
607 — 
the £60 million drawdowns on the group facility designated as part of the cash flow hedge relationship are for periods of one month repayable in april 2008
and therefore are held at notional value which is deemed equivalent to fair value the interest rate swaps are held at fair value changes in fair value totalling
£07 million have been charged directly to equity in relation to fair value movements in the interest rate swaps during the year ended 31 march 2008
bank loans held as a net investment hedge
the japanese yen drawdown on the group facility of £46 million 2007 £39 million is designated as a net investment hedge of the group’s investment 
in subsidiaries denominated in japanese yen
obligations under finance leases 
finance lease liabilities are secured on the assets to which they relate the average lease term outstanding is one year for the year ended 31 march 2008 the
average effective borrowing rate was 7 12 per cent 2007 7 70 per cent interest rates are fixed at the contract date the lease obligations are denominated in
thai baht and sterling and the fair value of the group’s lease obligations approximates their carrying value
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15 financial liabilities continued
loan maturities
2008 2007
£m £m 
bank loans and overdraft
bank loans or instalments thereof are repayable 
from 1—2 years — 02 
t otal due after more than one year — 02 
t otal due within one year 1427 505 
1427 507 
loan notes
loan note or instalments thereof are repayable 
after 5 years from the balance sheet date — 59 
from 3—4 years — — 
from 2—3 years — 555 
from 1—2 years — 27 
t otal due after more than one year — 641 
t otal due within one year — 31 
— 672 
obligations under finance lease see also note 24 
obligations under finance lease or instalments thereof are repayable 
from 1—2 years — 01 
t otal due after more than one year — 01 
t otal due within one year 01 02 
01 03 
forward contract derivatives
forward contract derivatives are repayable 
t otal due within one year — 03 
— 03 
interest rate and currency swaps
interest rate and currency swaps or instalments thereof are repayable 
from 2—3 years 08 84 
from 1—2 years — 11 
t otal due after more than one year 08 95 
t otal due within one year — 13 
08 108 
t otal financial liabilities
balances or instalments thereof are repayable 
after 5 years from the balance sheet date — 59 
from 2—3 years 08 639 
from 1—2 years — 41 
t otal due after more than one year 08 739 
t otal due within one year 1428 554
t otal financial liabilities 1436 1293 
the aggregate amount of debt any instalment of which falls due after 5 years is £nil 2007 £59 million 
financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 72
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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16 provisions for liabilities
overseas group and european
termination manufacturing commercial supply chain contingent
benefits disposals restructuring restructuring restructuring other consideration total
£m £m £m £m £m £m £m £m
at 31 march 2006 26 76 85 24 — 48 — 259 
t ransferred from creditors due after more than one year 13 — — — — — — 13 
provisions made during the year 04 — — — — — — 04 
provisions used during the year 03 61 47 20 — 12 — 143 
provisions transferred during the year — — 34 — — 34 — — 
exchange and other movements 01 — — 01 — — — 02 
at 31 march 2007 39 15 04 03 — 70 — 131 
provisions made during the year — — — — 465 — 14 479 
provisions used during the year 01 11 03 01 198 14 — 228 
provisions transferred during the year — 04 01 02 26 33 — — 
exchange and other movements 01 — — — 17 05 01 20 
at 31 march 2008 39 — — — 224 84 15 362 
current — — — — 224 36 — 260 
noncurrent 39 — — — — 48 15 102 
39 — — — 224 84 15 362 
 amounts payable to thirdparty sales agents upon termination of their contract were reclassified during the prior year from payables due after more than one year to provisions to reflect the
nature of the liability 
overseas termination benefits 
included with overseas termination benefits is an amount of £30 million 2007 £28 million for termination benefits payable to employees in a number 
of overseas subsidiaries benefits accrue with service and are payable to employees upon departure from the group regardless of the reason for such
departure benefits may be calculated with reference to an average salary over the service life of the employee or the final salary of the employee
differences arising due to changes in assumptions in calculating the liability for employees are taken through reserves and are included above within
exchange and other movements the main assumptions underlying the calculation on a weighted average basis across the various schemes are salary
increases of 20 per cent an inflation rate of 20 per cent and a discount rate of 30 per cent the calculation of the provision is determined by contractual
obligation and therefore can be estimated reliably no terminations are expected in the forthcoming year
provision is also made for termination payments which may be required for sales agents at the year end an amount of £10 million was provided 
2007 £11 million the amount provided is based upon payments which would be required under collective agreements to sales agents upon termination 
of their contracts by the group increase and decreases in the provision aside from utilisation are reflected within the income statement
disposals 
following the group’s disposal of the medical business in 2004 and 2005 a number of disposal provisions were created for the ongoing commitments of 
the group in respect of the disposals the group has utilised the majority of these provisions during the current year with the residual balance transferred
into environmental provisions included within the ‘other’ category
manufacturing restructuring 
during 2005 the group announced its decision to close the derby manufacturing plant and transfer production to india this process has been completed
during the current financial year £34 million which relates to a provision for a noncancellable lease for the derby site was reclassified into surplus property
within ‘other’ during the prior year 
group and commercial restructuring 
the group has completed its previous rationalisation and restructuring of commercial operations during the current financial year
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16 provisions for liabilities continued
european supply chain restructuring 
during the current financial year as part of the european supply chain restructuring detailed in note 2 provisions of £413 million were made in relation to the
closure of the manufacturing facilities at rubi spain and guernsey the closure of the t echnical services centre in cambridge and the restructuring of the
footwear development group following the announcement of phase 1 of this restructuring programme in september 2007  a provision of £52 million was
recorded in relation to the early repayment of loan notes and settlement of related derivatives giving a total provision created in the year of £465 million
surplus property provisions in relation to the closure of these sites of £26 million have been transferred to the surplus property provision within the ‘other’
provision it is anticipated that all of the remaining european supply chain restructuring provision will be utilised within the financial year 200809 the key
uncertainties regarding the provision are in relation to the potential transfer of plant at the rubi site to other manufacturing facilities in china for which
chinese government approval is required
other 
other provisions relate to a number of premerger environmental provisions of £12 million and surplus property provisions of £7 2 million
environmental provisions are provided for to the extent that a present obligation exists it is probable such costs will be incurred and they can be estimated
reliably no provision is made for possible additional costs that are not currently probable 
the surplus property provision relates to group commitments under noncancellable leases which following historical restructuring exercises are no longer
used by the group the obligation net of expected rental income has been provided for
surplus property and environmental costs of £48 million have been included as noncurrent it is expected that all other provisions will be utilised during the
next financial year 
contingent consideration 
contingent consideration of £15 million releates to the acquisition of the vasyli business as detailed in note 8 which is payable in june 2010 the
consideration is contingent upon the level of orthaheelbranded sales achieved across the group in the year ended 31 march 2010 and is capped at 
£194 million the amount recognised within provisions at 31 march 2008 is the amount which is considered probable to be paid based on detailed budgets
for 200809 and forecast growth for 200910 there are inherent uncertainties in deriving sales forecasts as the group has limited data and experience 
on which to estimate growth in existing orthaheel markets and orthaheel products are to be launched in new markets in 200809 the level of contingent
consideration will be reassessed at each reporting date to reflect revisions to forecasts or differences betweeen budget and actual sales performance
17 postretirement benefits
the group continues to operate both defined benefit and defined contribution pension plans in the uk and overseas all uk defined benefit schemes are
closed to new entrants
uk pensions
a defined contribution schemes
since 1995 the group has operated a contractedin defined contribution scheme which is open to uk employees it also operates defined contribution
executive pension plans for senior executives employer contributions are charged to the income statement in the period in which they are incurred
the total pension cost for the group in respect of uk defined contribution schemes was £13 million 2007 £14 million
b defined benefit schemes
the group continues to operate a number of defined benefit schemes following the mergers of seton healthcare group plc and scholl plc to form seton
scholl in 1998 and the subsequent merger of seton scholl and london international group limited lig in 1999 all uk schemes have been closed to new
entrants the finances of all schemes are assessed regularly by independent actuaries and all assets of the schemes are held in separate trustee administered
funds the schemes have provided benefits for employees as outlined below
i seton
prior to 1995 the group operated a defined benefit scheme for employees accrual of further servicerelated benefits under this scheme ceased in 
august 1995 but existing benefits at that date are being maintained the latest valuation of the scheme was at 5 april 2006 the group expects to make
contributions of £05 million into the scheme during the next financial year
financial statements 
• annual report and accounts 2008 74
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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ii scholl
accrual of further service related benefits under this defined benefit scheme ceased in august 2000 but benefits accrued to 31 august 2000 continue 
to be provided from the scheme the most recent valuation by independent actuaries was at 5 april 2006 the group expects to make contributions 
of £06 million into the scheme during the next financial year
iii lig
accrual of further servicerelated benefits under this defined benefit scheme ceased in january 2001 but benefits accrued to 31 january 2001 continue to
be provided from the scheme the latest actuarial valuation of the scheme was at 31 march 2006 the group expects to make contributions of £82 million
into the scheme during the next financial year
overseas pensions and similar obligations
the group has a number of pension schemes in different countries both defined benefit and defined contribution defined benefit schemes are set up
under separate trust funds and liabilities are generally assessed annually in accordance with the advice of independent actuaries the total pension cost 
for the group in respect of overseas defined contribution schemes was £22 million 2007 £19 million details of the material overseas defined benefit
schemes are given below the most recent valuation for each scheme as at the dates disclosed above were updated for ias 19 purposes to 31 march 2008
by independent qualified actuaries
the principal assumptions used by the actuaries in determining the present value of the liabilities were
2008 
seton scholl lig overseas
rate of increase in salaries 450 450 450 360
pensions increases per annum 340 — — 200
— pensions accrued to 6 april 1997 closed section — 300 — —
open section — 260 — —
— pensions accrued from 6 april 1997 closed section — 370 — —
open section — 340 — —
— pre april 1997 — — 240 —
— post april 1997 — — 340 —
discount rate applied to scheme liabilities 650 650 650 600
inflation assumption 350 350 350 290
2007
seton scholl lig overseas
rate of increase in salaries 400 400 400 400
pensions increases per annum 300 — — 300
— pensions accrued to 6 april 1997 closed section — 300 — —
open section — 225 — —
— pensions accrued from 6 april 1997 closed section — 325 — —
open section — 300 — —
— pre april 1997 — — 210 —
— post april 1997 — — 300 —
discount rate applied to scheme liabilities 540 540 540 475
inflation assumption 300 300 300 300
for the uk schemes the mortality assumption was updated in 2007 to reflect the experience analysis conducted as part of the most recent uk scheme
valuations as at 5 april 2006 the postretirement mortality assumptions allow for future improvements in mortality the assumed life expectancy for 
a 65yearold male retiring in the current period is 201 years 2007 200 years and for a male retiring in 20 years at age 65 life expectancy is 212 years 
2007 211 years the rate of return on government and corporate bonds is the yield rate at each year end date for longdated bonds the rate for cash 
is the same as that for government bonds the equity rate of return is derived by adding a risk adjustment factor to the government bond rate 
the rate for insurance contracts reflects the yield rate at the balance sheet date
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the assets in the schemes as at 31 march 2008 2007  2006 and 2005 were
2008
longterm
rate of return seton scholl lig overseas t otal
for forthcoming year £m £m £m £m £m
equities 770 78 118 629 04 829 
corporate bonds 550 15 11 155 03 184 
insurance contracts 560 — — — 82 82 
government bonds 450 61 121 366 — 548 
cash and other 450 — 10 08 — 18 
t otal market value 154 260 1158 89 1661 
present value of scheme liabilities 166 233 1645 127 2171
deficitsurplus in the scheme 12 27 487 38 510
write down of surplus to recoverable amount — 27 — — 27
deficit recognised in the balance sheet 12 — 487 38 537
2007
longterm
rate of return seton scholl lig overseas t otal
for forthcoming year £m £m £m £m £m
equities 780 81 161 628 04 874 
corporate bonds 500 15 10 112 02 139 
insurance contracts 475 — — — 68 68 
government bonds 450 59 80 431 — 570 
cash and other 450 — 10 12 — 22 
t otal market value 155 261 1183 74 1673 
present value of scheme liabilities 184 262 1810 111 2367
deficit in the scheme 29 01 627 37 694
2006
seton scholl lig overseas t otal
£m £m £m £m £m
t otal market value of scheme assets 154 254 1144 68 1620 
present value of scheme liabilities 197 295 1948 95 2535
deficit in the scheme 43 41 804 27 915
2005
seton scholl lig overseas t otal
£m £m £m £m £m
t otal market value of scheme assets 141 218 958 62 1379 
present value of scheme liabilities 177 258 1678 90 2203
deficit in the scheme 36 40 720 28 824
of the closing deficit in 2008 £25 million 2007 £22 million is in relation to unfunded schemes the remaining deficit is in relation to funded schemes
financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 76
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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movement in postretirement scheme obligations
2008 2007
seton scholl lig overseas seton scholl lig overseas 
£m £m £m £m £m £m £m £m 
present value of obligation at beginning of year 184 262 1810 111 197 295 1948 95 
current service cost — — — 04 — — — 01 
benefits paid 08 15 77 02 08 12 78 04 
other finance incomeexpense 10 14 96 04 10 14 95 05 
actuarial gainloss 20 28 184 05 15 35 155 17 
foreign exchange — — — 15 — — — 03 
present value of obligation at end of year 166 233 1645 127 184 262 1810 111
current service costs are recognised within the income statement within administrative expenses
fair value of scheme assets
2008 2007
seton scholl lig overseas seton scholl lig overseas 
£m £m £m £m £m £m £m £m
at beginning of year 155 261 1183 74 154 254 1144 68 
contributions paid by the employer 05 06 82 05 02 05 66 03 
expected return on scheme assets 10 17 74 04 09 15 67 03 
benefits paid 08 15 77 02 08 12 78 02 
actuarial lossgain 08 09 104 04 02 01 16 05 
foreign exchange — — — 12 — — — 03 
at end of year 154 260 1158 89 155 261 1183 74 
analysis of amounts included in financing costs
2008 2007
seton scholl lig overseas seton scholl lig overseas 
£m £m £m £m £m £m £m £m
expected return on pension scheme assets 10 17 74 04 09 15 67 03 
interest on pension scheme liabilities 10 14 96 04 10 14 95 05
— 03 22 — 01 01 28 02
analysis of amount recognised in the statement of recognised income and expense
2008 2007
seton scholl lig overseas seton scholl lig overseas 
£m £m £m £m £m £m £m £m
actual return less expected return on scheme assets 08 09 104 04 02 01 16 05 
experience gainloss arising on scheme liabilities — — 18 — 03 02 11 — 
changes in assumptions underlying the present 
value of scheme liabilities 20 28 202 05 18 37 144 17 
actuarial gainloss recognised in the sorie 12 19 80 01 13 34 139 12
restriction of defined benefit plan surplus — 27 — — — — — — 
t otal amounts recognised in the sorie 12 08 80 01 13 34 139 12
cumulative actuarial gains and losses recognised in equity are as follows
2008 2007
£m £m
as at 1 april 177 351
net actuarial gains recognised in the year 112 174
65 177 as at 31 march
the actual return on scheme assets is as follows
2008 2007
£m £m
20 80 actual return on scheme assets
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17 postretirement benefits continued
history of experience gains and losses
2008
seton scholl lig overseas 
£m £m £m £m
difference between expected return and actual return on scheme assets
— amount £m 08 09 104 04 
— percentage of year end scheme assets 5 3 9 4  
experience gains and losses on scheme liabilities
— amount £m — — 18 — 
— percentage of year end scheme present value of scheme liabilities 0 0 1 0
2007
seton scholl lig overseas 
£m £m £m £m
difference between expected return and actual return on scheme assets
— amount £m 02 01 16 05 
— percentage of year end scheme assets 1 0 1 7
experience gains and losses on scheme liabilities
— amount £m 18 37 155 17 
— percentage of year end scheme present value of scheme liabilities 10 14 9 15
2006
seton scholl lig overseas 
£m £m £m £m
difference between expected return and actual return on scheme assets
— amount £m 18 27 124 — 
— percentage of year end scheme assets 13 12 13 0
experience gains and losses on scheme liabilities
— amount £m 26 33 242 05 
— percentage of year end scheme present value of scheme liabilities 15 13 14 6
2005
seton scholl lig overseas 
£m £m £m £m
difference between expected return and actual return on scheme assets
— amount £m 06 10 19 01 
— percentage of year end scheme assets 4 5 2 2
experience gains and losses on scheme liabilities
— amount £m 17 17 158 10 
— percentage of year end scheme present value of scheme liabilities 10 7 9 11
financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 78
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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18 employee costs and share option plans for employees
employee costs
the average number of people employed by the group is set out in the table below in accordance with companies act 1985 this includes 
parttime employees 
2008 2007
no no
employees
average number of people employed by the group in
— united kingdom and continental europe 1948 1963 
— americas 50 48 
— asia pacific and rest of the world 3352 3087
5350 5098 
the total number of people employed by the group at the end of the year was 5350 2007 5286
the costs incurred during the year in respect of the continuing business employees were
2008 2007
£m £m
wages and salaries 804 753 
social security costs 119 107 
other pension and health insurance costs 57 52 
980 912 
severance costs of £17 3 million 2007 £1 million are not included in the above
full details of directors’ remuneration shares and options are set out in the directors’ remuneration report on pages 39 to 45
the directors believe that together with the basic salary system the group’s employee incentive schemes provide competitive marketrelated packages to
motivate employees they should also align the interests of employees with those of shareholders as a whole through longterm share ownership of the company 
group annual bonus scheme
this scheme is a performance bonus scheme for directors and senior employees within the uk and overseas annual bonuses are paid in cash and reflect
both corporate and individual performance measures maximum bonuses are paid upon achievement of 1050 per cent of the target for directors and senior
employees this reduces on a straightline basis to 40 per cent of the maximum for the achievement of the target for senior employees the bonus further
reduces in a straightline to 10 per cent of the maximum for reaching 97 5 per cent of the target no bonus is payable for achieving less than 97 5 per cent 
of the target
local bonus schemes
individual countries run local bonus schemes for senior employees who fall outside the group annual bonus scheme performance targets are set locally and
payment of bonuses is at the discretion of local management
executive share option schemes
the group has a number of executive share option schemes
london international group 1991 scheme
this scheme was open to senior executives of london international group prior to the merger with seton scholl healthcare plc in 1999 no further grants may
be made under this scheme all outstanding options have performance targets attached to them which have been met the outstanding options expired on
3 december 2007 
ssl 1990 share option scheme
this was a senior executive scheme approved in june 1990 for a period of 10 years as the scheme has now expired no further grants may be made all outstanding
options in the scheme will expire in june 2010  exercise of any grants made since june 1999 is subject to performance targets being met 
ssl 1996 share option scheme
this is a senior executive scheme approved in july 1996 for a period of 10 years no further grants may be made after july 2006 prior to march 2005 annual
grants were made under this scheme following announcement of final results since the development of the new performance share plan as detailed below
no grants have been made during the current or prior year exercise of all grants is subject to performance targets being met
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18 employee costs and share option plans for employees continued
long t erm incentive plan
this is a scheme approved in july 1999 for senior executives no further awards may be made under the plan after awards in respect of the financial year
commencing in 2009 awards may be made of deferred shares funded by the sacrifice of up to 50 per cent of the executive’s annual bonus these deferred
shares are matched by performance shares the transfer of which is conditional upon certain performance targets being met dividends are payable to the
executives on the deferred shares awards were made under this scheme in july 2000 2001 and 2002 no subsequent awards have been made the
performance targets were not met for the 2000 and 2001 awards but were met for the 2002 award
ssl international stock purchase plan
this is a scheme operating within the us business which was approved by the board in august 2001 and launched in september 2001 no further offering may
be made after august 2011 employees may choose to save each month during a oneyear offering period at the end of the offering period employees may
purchase shares at a discount of 15 per cent on the lower of the first day or last day market price no offers have been made since january 2005
ssl sharesave scheme
this is an hm revenue  customs approved savingsrelated scheme approved by shareholders at the company’s agm in july 1996 no further grants may be
made under the scheme after july 2006 the last grants made under the scheme were in january 2005 
options were only granted to employees who entered into hm revenue  customs approved savings contracts with the savings body nominated by the
company savings of a fixed amount not less than £5 nor more than £250 are made over a period of three or five years the number of ordinary shares 
over which an option is granted will be such that the total amount payable on its exercise will be the proceeds on maturity of the related savings contract 
no payment was required for the grant of an option options are not transferable employees may choose to withdraw from the scheme at which point they
will receive their cash savings plus interest 
acquisition price
the price per ordinary share payable upon the exercise of an option was 80 per cent of the average of the middle market quotations for an ordinary share 
on the london stock exchange on the dealing date prior to the date on which invitations to apply for options were issued
exercise of options
an option will normally be exercisable for six months commencing on the third or fifth anniversary of the start of the related savings contract options may 
be satisfied by the issue of new shares or through the seton healthcare group qualifying employee share ownership t rust either by newly issued shares 
or market purchases by the t rust options will normally lapse upon cessation of employment
ssl international plc global share savings plan
this scheme was approved at the company’s agm in july 2001 and launched in september 2001 no grants may be made under the plan after july 2011
eligibility
the scheme has been launched to date in australia austria canada denmark france germany greece hong kong hungary indonesia ireland italy
japan malaysia netherlands new zealand norway poland portugal singapore spain sweden switzerland t aiwan thailand and t urkey
grant of options
the scheme operates in a similar way to the ssl uk sharesave scheme however savings are made with local banks in local currencies
financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 80
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the price per ordinary share payable upon the exercise of an option will be 80 per cent of the average of the middle market quotations for an ordinary share
on the london stock exchange on the dealing date prior to the date on which invitations to apply for options are issued
exercise of options
an option will normally be exercisable for six months commencing on the third anniversary of the start of the related savings contract options are satisfied
by the issue of new shares
deferred share bonus plan
this plan was in operation for the 200506 financial year only and was intended to provide a focused incentive upon achievement of shortterm financial
objectives under the scheme executives were awarded a bonus upon achievement of eps targets capped at 100 per cent of salary for the chief executive
and 75 per cent of salary for executive directors the bonus earned was converted into an equivalent notional number of shares at a price of 32175 pence
and deferred until 30 march 2007  payment was subject to the employee remaining in service at that point in time the amount paid in cash in april 2007 
was the value of the notional number of shares awarded multiplied by the average share price during march 2007  
performance share plan
this plan approved at the company’s agm in july 2005 is intended to be the company’s only active longterm incentive plan eligibility is restricted to the
chief executive and senior executives currently the top 35 employees annual grants do not exceed 100 per cent of base salary shares are awarded and 
will vest after three years subject to performance conditions being met 
executive share option plans and share savings plans
the executive share option plans include executive options that have a tsr performance condition attached these options have been valued using the
montecarlo simulation model all other options have been valued using the black scholes formula there have been no share options granted in the current
or preceeding financial year the fair value of the services received for share options granted in earlier years was calculated at the date of grant and disclosure
of the assumptions applied in valuing those options was provided in the annual report in the applicable year
global share savings plan
executive share option plans and uk sharesave scheme 
options waep options waep 
000 pence 000 pence 
options outstanding at 1 april 2006 2961 407 1125 232 
options exercised 295 290 335 208 
options lapsed 663 554 117 262 
options outstanding at 31 march 2007 2003 361 673 233 
options exercised 159 296 204 236 
options lapsed 434 428 37 289 
options outstanding at 31 march 2008 1410 361 432 233
range of exercise prices 250p to 784p 208p to 444p 
weighted average remaining contractual life days 1649 247 
options exercisable 1410 348 18 237 
 weighted average exercise price
the weighted average share price at the date of exercise for share options exercised during the year was 467p 2007 332p the charge for sharebased
payments in respect of share options is £02 million 2007 £04 million which is comprised entirely of equitysettled transactions
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18 employee costs and share option plans for employees continued
long t erm incentive plan
at the start of the year no performance shares were still to be awarded subject to performance criteria being met 
performance share plan
no shares wafv 
000 pence 
at 1 april 2006 1044 291 
shares awarded in august 2006 1095 282 
at 31 march 2007 2139 286 
shares awarded 764 429 
share award lapses 168 467
as at 31 march 2008 2735 286 
 weighted average fair value
the fair value is based upon the share price at the date of grant of the notional share award the charge for the performance share plan during the current
year is £32 million 2007 £19 million
19 reserves
cumulative cash flow equity
share share merger foreign hedge retained holders of minority total
capital premium reserve exchange reserve earnings the parent interests equity
note £m£m£m£m£m£m £m £m £m
at 1 april 2006 190 415 1368 45 — 1348 670 85 755 
t otal recognised income and expense — — — 55 — 440 385 13 398 
shares issued in the period — 17 — — — 03 14 — 14 
own shares held issued for cash consideration — — — — — 02 02 — 02 
equity dividends 20 — — — — — 124 124 — 124 
exchange adjustments — — — — — — — 08 08 
sharebased payments — — — — — 23 23 — 23 
t axation taken to reserves in respect of sharebased payments — — — — — 06 06 — 06 
dividends paid to minority interests — — — — — — — 02 02
at 31 march 2007 and 1 april 2007 190 432 1368 10 — 1004 976 88 1064 
t otal recognised income and expense — — — 218 07 38 249 20 269 
shares issued in the period 01 08 — — — — 09 — 09 
equity dividends 20 — — — — — 133 133 — 133 
exchange adjustments — — — — — — — 07 07 
sharebased payments — — — — — 34 34 — 34 
t axation taken to reserves in respect of sharebased payments — — — — — 03 03 — 03 
at 31 march 2008 191 440 1368 208 07 1062 1138 115 1253
t ranslation reserve
the translation reserve comprises all foreign exchange differences arising from the translation of foreign operations as well as from the translation of liabilities
that hedge the group’s net investment in foreign subsidiaries during the year foreign exchange losses of £05 million 2007 gains of £05 million on foreign
currency borrowings were offset by gains of £05 million 2007 losses of £05 million arising from retranslation of foreign assets designated as the hedging
instrument the net investment hedge was 100 per cent effective in the current and prior year
cash flow hedge reserve
the cash flow hedge reserve comprises the effective portion of interest rate swaps designated as cash flow hedges of variable rate borrowings transferred 
to the reserve during the current financial year
financial statements 
• annual report and accounts 2008 82
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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equity holders of the parent
the group previously had an investment in own shares which represented shares acquired by the seton healthcare group qualifying employee share
ownership t rust quest and seton healthcare group employee ownership plan esop the shares were purchased on the open market and were held for
employees participating in various share schemes the shares held at the start of the prior year were issued to employees for cash consideration of £02 million
following option exercises under the sharesave and executive option schemes during the year ended 31 march 2007 further shares were issued into the
trusts and issued to employees to satisfy option exercises under the sharesave and executive option schemes this resulted in a reduction in retained
earnings of £03 million at 31 march 2007  the group had no investment in its own shares at 31 march 2008 or 31 march 2007 
called up £0 10 ordinary share capital of the parent company
allotted allotted
calledup and calledup and
authorised fully paid authorised fully paid 
no no £m £m 
at 1 april 2006 250000000189918233 250 190 
employee share options schemes — options exercised — 546691 — — 
at 31 march 2007 250000000190464924 250 190 
employee share options schemes — options exercised — 362571 — 01 
at 31 march 2008 250000000190827495 250 191
the holders of ordinary shares are entitled to receive dividends as declared from time to time and are entitled to one vote per share at meetings of the
company details of the share option schemes in place are included in note 18
capital management
the group manages its capital to ensure that entities in the group will be able to continue as going concerns whilst maximising the return to stakeholders
through the optimisation of the debt and equity balance the capital structure of the group consists of debt which includes the borrowings disclosed in 
note 15 cash and cash equivalents and equity attributable to equity holders of the parent comprising issued capital reserves and retained earnings as
disclosed above
the group has the authority to purchase its own shares on the market for the purpose of issuing shares under the group’s share option and performance
share plans no such purchases were made during the current or previous financial year decisions to purchase shares are made on a specific transaction
basis by the board there is no defined share buyback plan
there were no changes in the group’s approach to capital management during the year neither the company nor any of its subsidiaries are subject to
externally imposed capital requirements
20 dividends
2008 2007 2008 2007
pence per £0 10 pence per £010
ordinary share ordinary share £m £m
2007 final paid 6 september 2007 2006 final paid 7 september 2006 47 44 89 84 
2008 interim paid 5 march 2008 2007 interim paid 1 march 2007 23 21 44 40
amounts recognised as distributions to equity holders in the year 70 65 133 124 
the proposed final dividend for 2008 is 53 pence per ordinary share and £101 million in total the proposed 2008 final dividend will be submitted to the
shareholders for approval at the annual general meeting and has not been recognised as a distribution to equity holders in these financial statements 
this will be payable subject to approval on 4 september 2008 to shareholders on the register on 1 august 2008
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21 analysis of net debt
cash and cash 
bank loans and loan notes interest rate swap derivatives t otal equivalents
due after due within due after due within finance financial per balance
one year one year one year one year leases overdrafts liabilities sheet net debt
£m £m £m £m £m £m £m £m £m
at 1 april 2006 748 312 50 04 09 147 1270 355 915 
cash flow — 73 — 06 07 10 50 67 17 
other noncash changes 27 27 13 13 01 — 01 — 01 
exchange adjustments 80 08 78 02 — 05 13 19 06 
fair value changes arising from interest 
rates movements 02 — 20 — — — 18 — 18 
at 31 march 2007 643 404 95 13 03 132 1290 403 887 
cash flow 646 884 95 13 03 42 85 19 66 
other noncash changes — — 08 — 01 — 09 — 09 
exchange adjustments 03 30 — — — 19 52 24 28 
fair value changes arising from interest 
rates movements — — — — — — — — — 
at 31 march 2008 — 1318 08 — 01 109 1436 446 990 
net debt is defined as financial liabilities less cash and cash equivalents 
22 financial risk management
the group has exposure to the following risks from its use of financial instruments credit liquidity interest rate and currency further information on the
group’s exposure to these risks is presented below with an explanation of the group’s policies and processes for measuring and managing these risks
the board of directors has overall responsibility for the establishment and review of the group’s risk management policies and procedures these guidelines
are designed to identify and analyse the risks faced by the group including setting and monitoring compliance with appropriate limits and controls the policies
are reviewed regularly and amended where appropriate to reflect changes in the group’s operations risk exposure and market conditions the board is
assisted by the group’s business assurance function which undertakes regular and ad hoc reviews of risk management controls and procedures the results
of which are reported to the audit committee
the group’s t reasury function provides services to the business coordinates acess to domestic and international financial markets and monitors and
manages the financial risks relating to the operations of the group
credit risk 
credit risk is the risk of financial loss to the group if a customer or counterparty to a financial instrument fails to meet its contractual obligations and arises
principally from the the group’s trade receivables and investment securities
t rade and other receivables 
the group’s exposure to credit risk is influenced by the individual characteristics of each customer the default risk of the industry and country in which
customers operate has less of an influence on credit risk geographically approximately 75—80 per cent of the group’s debtors are in europe
group exposure to credit risk is controlled by setting a policy which is reviewed annually for limiting credit exposure to counterparties reviewing credit
ratings and limiting individual aggregate credit exposures accordingly the group considers the possibility of material loss in the event of nonperformance
by a financial counterparty to be unlikely customer credit risk is monitored at a subsidiary level by divisional management and is reviewed at group level 
by country
goods are sold subject to retention of title clauses so that in the event of nonpayment the group may have a secured claim the group does not require
collateral in respect of trade and other receivables
financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 84
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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the group establishes an allowance for impairment that represents its estimate of incurred losses in respect of trade and other receivables and investments
the main components of this allowance are a specific loss component that relates to individually significant exposures and a collective loss component
established for groups of similar assets in respect of losses that have been incurred but not yet identified the collective loss allowance is determined based
on historical data of payments statistics for similar financial assets
investment securities 
surplus funds are invested in high quality liquid marketable investments investments are of a plain vanilla nature with no embedded derivatives 
the group deposits central funds when available with highly rated banks in line with group policy the central funds on deposit at the balance sheet 
date were £15 million 2007 £95 million 
guarantees 
the group’s policy is to provide financial guarantees only to whollyowned subsidiaries at 31 march 2008 no guarantees were outstanding 2007 none
liquidity risk 
liquidity risk is the risk that the group will not be able to meet its financial obligations as they fall due the group’s approach to managing liquidity is to ensure
as far as possible that it will always have sufficient liquidity under both normal and stressed conditions without incurring unacceptable losses or risking
damage to the group’s reputation
the group manages liquidity risks by ensuring that any anticipated funding requirements based on detailed cash flow forecasts at subsidiary and group
level will be met by access to different sources of funding t ypically the group ensures that it has sufficient cash on demand to meet expected operational
expenses for a period of 30—60 days including the servicing of financial obligations in addition the group maintains the credit facilities detailed in note 15
committed undrawn facilities available to the group in respect of which all conditions precedent had been met at the balance sheet date were as follows
2008 2007
£m £m 
expiring in one year or less — 700 
expiring in more than one year and less than two years — — 
expiring in more than two years 970 1461 
total 970 2161 
market risk 
market risk is the risk that changes in market prices such as foreign exchange rates interest rates and equity prices would affect the group’s income the
value of its holdings of financial instruments or its obligations in respect of retirement benefits
foreign currency risk 
the group is exposed to currency risk on sales purchases and borrowings that are denominated in a currency other than the functional currency of the
group’s entities where practicable the group uses forward foreign exchange contracts to hedge major transactional exposures on working capital balances
at the start of each financial year the group hedges approximately 50 to 70 per cent of its estimated foreign currency exposure in respect of forecast sales
and purchases over the forthcoming financial year
interest on borrowings is primarily denominated in sterling such that no related foreign currency derivatives are required 
in respect of other monetary assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies the group ensures that its net exposure is kept to an acceptable level
by buying or selling foreign currencies at spot rates when necessary to address shortterm imbalances
the group’s investment in its japanese subsidiary is hedged by a japanese yendenominated secured bank loan which mitiages the currency risk arising
from the subsidiary’s net assets
interest rate risk
the group’s fixed rate borrowings are exposed to a risk of change in their fair value due to changes in interest rates 
the group’s variable rate borrowings are exposed to a risk of change in cash flows due to changes in interest rates the group has reduced its exposure to 
this by entering into interest rate swaps 
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22 financial risk management continued
other market price risk
the group does not speculate in equity securities nor does the group enter into commodity contracts other than to meet the group’s expected usage
requirements the group holds a strategic investment of £1 million in the equity securities of an unlisted company as detailed in note 9 this is not deemed 
to expose the group to market price risk although the investment is subject to annual impairment reviews
exposure to credit risk
the carrying amount of financial assets represents the maximum credit exposure the maximum exposure to credit risk at the reporting date was
carrying amount carrying amount
2008 2007
£m £m 
t rade and other receivables excluding prepayments and derivative financial assets 1690 1432
available for sale financial assets 10 —
cash and cash equivalents 446 403
interest rate swaps used for hedging 01 — 
other forward exchange contracts 04 03
the maximum exposure to credit risk for trade receivables at the reporting date by geographic region was
carrying amount carrying amount
2008 2007
£m £m 
united kingdon 239 227
europe 1049 893
asia pacific 40 39
united states 221 180
1549 1339
the ageing of trade receivables at the reporting date was
allowance allowance
gross for impairment gross for impairment
2008 2008 2007 2007
£m £m £m £m 
t rade receivables due within terms 1552 — 1268 — 
past due by less than 30 days 77 — 48 — 
past due 31—120 days 84 — 87 — 
past due 120—365 days 38 20 33 06
more than one year 38 38 33 33
1789 58 1469 39
provision for rebates 182 91
gross trade receivables note 11 1607 1378 
allowance for impairment 58 39
net credit exposure 1549 1339 
there are no customers representing more than 2 per cent of the total balance of trade receivables in determining the recoverability of a trade 
receivable the group considers any change in the credit quality of the trade receivable from the date credit was initially granted up to the reporting date 
the concentration of credit risk is limited due to the customer base being large and unrelated accordingly the directors believe that there is no further 
credit provision required in excess of the allowance for impairment movement on the allowance for impairment in respect of trade receivables is disclosed 
in note 11 based on previous experience the group believes that no impairment allowance is necessary in respect of trade receivables not past due 
all receivables classified as noncurrent are within the respective paymentcontractual terms
financial statements 
• annual report and accounts 2008 86
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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liquidity risk
the following are the contractual maturities of financial liabilities including interest payments and excluding the impact of netting arrangements 0
2008
carrying contractual 6 months more than
amount cash flows or less 6—12 months 1—2 years 2—5 years 5 years
nonderivative financial liabilities
secured bank loans 1230 1245 1139 106 — — — 
finance lease liabilities 01 01 01 — — — — 
unsecured bank facility 88 89 89 — — — — 
t rade and other payables 1388 1388 1380 — 08 — — 
bank overdrafts 109 109 109 — — — — 
derivative financial liabilities
interest rate swaps used for hedging 08 08 08 ———— 
2007
carrying contractual 6 months more than
amount cash flows or less 6—12 months 1—2 years 2—5 years 5 years
nonderivative financial liabilities
secured bank loans 339 343 343 — — — — 
loan notes 672 858 27 58 81 619 73
finance lease liabilities 03 03 01 01 01 — — 
unsecured bank facility 36 36 34 — 02 — — 
t rade and other payables 1182 1182 1182 — — — — 
bank overdrafts 132 132 124 — 08 — — 
derivative financial liabilities
interest rate swaps used for hedging 108 108 108 — — — — 
forward exchange conracts used for hedging 03 03 03 — — — — 
 derivative financial liabilities are accounted for at fair value and it is not deemed appropriate to allocate the cash flows across the maturity categories
the loan notes at 31 march 2007 were repaid in full in october 2007 following the announcement of the european supply chain restructuring programme
the related interest rate swaps used for hedging were also settled at that time the early repayment of the loan notes and related swaps led to a oneoff
finance charge of £52 million as disclosed in note 3
the interest rate swaps used for hedging at 31 march 2008 are designated in a cash flow hedge relationship against £60 million of the secured bank loans and
therefore the related cash flows will not impact upon profit or loss until the hedge relationship ceases
currency risk
exposure to currency risk
the group’s main exposure to foreign currency risk was in respect of the euro based on notional amounts
2008 2007
exposure to exposure to 
euro risk euro risk
£m £m
t rade receivables 953 778
t rade payables 317 221
other payables 238 193
gross balance sheet exposure 398 364
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22 financial risk management continued
net exposure to currency risk with regards to other foreign currencies was not significant at 31 march 2008 or 31 march 2007 
the following significant exchange rates applied during the year
average rate for the year balance sheet date
2008 2007 2008 2007
euro 14187 14756 12543 14735
sensitivity analysis
a 10 per cent strengthening of sterling against the euro at 31 march 2008 and 31 march 2007 would have increaseddecreased equity and profit or loss by the
amounts shown below this analysis assumes that all other variables including interest rates remain constant 
2008 2007
profit profit
equity or loss equity or loss
euro 16 11 15 35
a 10 per cent weakening of sterling against the euro at 31 march 2008 and 31 march 2007 would have had the equal but opposite effect to the amounts shown
above on the basis that all other variables remain constant
interest rate risk
at the reporting date the interest rate profile of the group’s interestbearing financial instruments was
2008 2007
£m £m
fixed rate instruments
financial assets 21 28
financial liabilities 92 686
variable rate instruments
financial assets 425 375
financial liabilities 1336 604
fair value sensitivity analysis for fixed rate instruments
at 31 march 2008 the group does not account for any fixed rate financial assets and liabilities at fair value through profit or loss and the group has not designated
interest rate swaps under a fair value hedge accounting model therefore a change in interest rates at the reporting date would not affect profit or loss
cash flow sensitivity analysis for variable rate instruments
due to the short maturity dates of the drawdowns on the group facility at 31 march 2008 average maturity 51 days and 31 march 2007 average maturity 
83 days a change of 100 basis points in interest rates at either reporting date would have negligible impact on the carrying value of variable rate financial
instruments and similarly upon profit or loss the interest rate swap at 31 march 2008 is included as part of a cash flow hedge relationship therefore any change
in interest rates at the reporting date would have no impact upon profit or loss for the year only upon the amount recognised in equity within the cash flow
hedge reserve there were no variable rate interest rate swaps at 31 march 2007 
financial statements 
• annual report and accounts 2008 88
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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fair values
fair values versus carrying amounts
the fair values of financial assets and liabilities together with the carrying amounts shown in the balance sheet are as follows
2008 2007
£m £m £m £m
carrying amount fair value carrying amount fair value
available for sale financial assets 10 10 — — 
t rade and other receivables excluding prepayments and derivative financial assets 1690 1690 1432 1432 
cash and cash equivalents 446 446 403 403
interest rate swaps used for hedging liabilities net 07 07 108 108
forward exchange contracts used for hedging 04 04 03 03
secured bank loans 1230 1230 339 339
finance lease liabilities 01 01 03 03
unsecured bank facilities 88 88 36 36
t rade and other payables 1388 1388 1182 1182
bank overdrafts 109 109 132 132
673 673 32 32
unrecognised gain loss — — 
basis for determining fair values
the following summarises the significant methods and assumptions used in estimating the fair values of financial insrtuments reflected in the table above
available for sale financial assets
the available for sale financial assets at 31 march 2008 is an unquoted entity therefore fair value of the shareholding cannot be readily ascertained the
investment is therefore held at initial cost which is deemed to be comparable to fair value although the investment is subject to annual impairment review
derivatives
the fair value of forward exchange contracts is based on their listed market price if available if a listed market price is not available then fair value is estimated
by discounting the difference between the contractual forward price and the current forward price for ther residual maturity of the contract using a riskfree
interest rate based on government bonds
the fair value of interest rate swaps is based on broker quotes those quotes are tested for reasonableness by discounting estimated future cash flows
based on the terms and maturity of each contract and using market interest rates for a similar instrument at the reporting date
nonderivative financial liabilities
fair value is calculated based on the present value of future principal and interest cash flows discounted at the market rate of interest at the reporting date 
in respect of finance leases the market rate of interest is determined by reference to similar lease agreements
t rade and other receivables
the fair value of trade and other receivables is estimated as the present value of future cash flows discounted at the market rate of interest at the reporting date
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financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 90
notes to the consolidated financial statements
continued
22 financial risk management continued
interest rates used for determining fair value
the interest rates used to discount estimated cash flows where applicable are based on the government yield curve at the reporting date plus an adequate
constant credit spread and were as follows
2008 2007
derivatives n a 708
loans and borrowing n a 758
23 financial instruments
a interest rate risk profile of financial assets and liabilities 
financial assets 
2008 2007
at floating at fixed at floating at fixed
interest rates interest rates t otal interest rates interest rates t otal
£m £m £m £m £m £m 
cash and cash equivalents
sterling 162 — 162 147 — 147 
us dollar 16 — 16 20 — 20 
euro 26 19 45 53 15 68 
other 221 02 223 155 13 168 
t otal 425 21 446 375 28 403 
cash and cash equivalents at floating interest rates comprise cash at bank and shortterm deposits these are held at call and accrue interest at effective
interest rates of less than 47 per cent cash and cash equivalents at fixed interest rates comprise shortterm bank deposits these are placed on terms not
exceeding three months the deposits accrue effective rates of interest of between 20 per cent and 36 per cent 
financial liabilities 
the group’s fixed rate financial derivatives and fixed rate borrowings are exposed to a risk of change in their fair value due to changes in interest rates 
the group’s variable rate financial derivatives and variable rate borrowings are exposed to a risk of change in cash flows due to changes in interest rates
hedging 
interest rate and currency swaps denominated in us dollars euros and sterling were in place at 31 march 2007 to hedge the group’s exposure to risks in
accordance with its interest rate policy these swaps were matched in maturity to the underlying debt at 31 march 2008 the group had interest rate and
currency swaps with a notional amount of £1330 million 2007 £119 million interest rate swaps including those in effective fair value hedging relationships
are measured at fair value under ias 39 
the fair value of interest and currency swaps recognised as hedges at 31 march 2008 is a net liability of £07 million comprising assets of £01 million and
liabilities of £08 million 2007 net liabilty of £16 million comprising assets of £17 8 million and liabilities of £194 million
up to the repayment of the loan notes and settlement of related swaps in november 2007  interest rate swaps designated as fair value hedges were fair
valued through the income statement as part of net finance costs underlying loans that form part of fair value hedge relationships were adjusted for fair
value attributable to hedged risk through the income statement to offset any marktomarket arising on the interest rate swaps hedge documentation was
prepared for all fair value hedges at inception and effectiveness testing was carried out semiannually all designated hedges remained effective throughout
the current financial year to the point of settlement
the maturity dates of all financial liabilities together with details of their fair values and carrying values are disclosed in note 15 ttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt
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91
effects of interest rate and currency swaps 
the following reflects the effects of financial derivatives on the group’s borrowings at 31 march 2008 at 31 march 2007 
before after before after
financial financial financial financial
derivatives derivatives derivatives derivatives
£m £m £m £m 
sterling 1101 1101 421 1069 
us dollar — — 609 25 
euro 280 280 143 239 
japanese y en 46 46 05 05 
other currencies 01 01 02 02 
1428 1428 1180 1290 
floating rate borrowings 1336 1336 507 604 
fixed rate borrowings 92 92 673 686 
1428 1428 1180 1290 
the analysis above does not include the markingtomarket liabilities arising on forward contract derivatives
the following tables show the profile of the group’s fixed and floating rate borrowings after the effect of swaps for both the current and prior year
2008 2007
at floating at fixed at floating at fixed
interest rates interest rates t otal interest rates interest rates t otal
£m £m £m £m £m £m 
interest bearing loans and overdrafts
sterling 1101 — 1101 360 709 1069 
us dollar — — — — 25 25 
euro 189 91 280 239 — 239 
other 46 01 47 05 02 07 
total 1336 92 1428 604 686 1290 
interest rates of the group’s borrowings 
floating rate financial liabilities in material currencies are based upon libor
the following table shows the notional and effective rates of interest of the group’s fixed rate borrowings after the effect of swaps
t otal 2008 t otal 2007
fixed rate effective notional fixed rate effective notional
borrowing interest interest borrowing interest interest
£m rates rates £m rates rates 
sterling guaranteed loans notes — — — 59 802 787
currency swap us loan notes to sterling fixed rate borrowing — — — 624 783 769
euro bank loans 91 477 477 — — — 
obligations under finance leases 01 712 712 03 770 770
t otalweighted average rate 92 480 480 686 785 771 ttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt
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23 financial instruments continued
the following table shows the average effective rates of interest of the group’s variable rate borrowings after the effect of swaps 
2008 2007
t otal average t otal average
variable rate effective variable rate effective
borrowing interest borrowing interest
£m rates £m rates 
sterling bank loans and overdrafts 1101 626 360 553
currency swap euro fixed rate receivable to euro floating rate payable — — 96 512
euro bank loans and overdrafts 189 469 143 439
japanese y en bank loans and overdrafts 46 153 05 263
t otal weighted average rate 1336 512 604 517
b foreign currency risk 
the table below shows the group’s transactional currency exposures that give rise to the net currency gains and losses recognised in the income statement
such exposures comprise the monetary assets and liabilities of the group that are not denominated in the functional currency of the relevant local operating
company involved other than the nonsterling borrowings treated as hedges of net assets in overseas operations
net foreign currency financial assetsliabilities in £m 
sterling us dollar euro other total
at 31 march 2008
functional currency of group operations 
sterling — 01 04 01 06
other 04 — 01 — 05
t otal 04 01 05 01 11 
at 31 march 2007 
functional currency of group operations 
sterling — — 01 — 0 1 
other 07 — 07 — 14 
t otal 07 — 08 — 15 
the amounts shown in the table above take into account the effect of any forward contracts and other derivatives entered into to manage these 
currency exposures 
financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 92
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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24 leases
2008 2007
£m £m 
t otal commitments to pay rentals under operating leases
minimum lease payments made during the year 
— land and buildings 41 42 
— plant equipment and motor vehicles 15 15 
56 57 
utilisation of surplus property provision 26 13
lease payments charged to income statement 30 44
the future minimum lease commitments under leases are as follows operating leases finance leases 
2008 2007 2008 2007
£m £m £m £m 
rentals due within one year 32 22 01 02 
from 1—2 years 28 21 — 01 
from 2—3 years 19 29 — — 
from 3—4 years 13 12 — — 
from 4—5 years 10 09 — — 
after 5 years from balance sheet date 10 08 — — 
112 101 01 03 
less amounts representing interest — — 
present value of net minimum lease payments 01 03 
less current lease obligations 01 02 
noncurrent lease obligations — 01
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25 statutory and other information
related party transactions 
ssl ttk and ttklig minority interest 
in accordance with ias 24 ‘related party disclosures’ are reported only with parties outside the consolidated group
during the year the group has transacted with the minority interest holding groups of ssl ttk limited and ttklig limited specific transactions which 
are considered material are as follows
the group has made sales of £57 million to the minority group 2007 £185 million and has paid packing charges of £08 million 2007 £05 million and
logo charges of £05 million 2007 £04 million to the minority group
at the year end the group was owed £11 million 2007 £33 million from the minority interest holding group of ssl ttk limited and ttklig limited
qingdao london durex company limited
prior to the acquisition of the remaining 50 per cent of qingdao london durex company limited in january 2007  the group received royalties from this
company of £09 million during the prior financial year dividends of £20 million were also due to the group at 31 march 2007 in relation to profits earned 
by this company prior to the group acquiring the remaining 50 per cent of this company
key management personnel compensation 
key management personnel being the executive directors and those persons discharging managerial responsibilities received the following compensation
during the period
31 march 2008
£m
shortterm employee benefits 47
sharebased payments 22
post employment benefits 02
total 71
subsequent events 
proposed dividends are disclosed in note 20  
on 19 may 2008 the group completed the first stage of its investment in beleggingsmaatschappij lemore bv acquiring a 155 per cent stake for £248 million
with further options to purchase the remainder exercisable over the next two years
there are no other events after the balance sheet date disclosable under ias 10 ‘events after the balance sheet date’
26 commitments and contingent liabilities
2008 2007
£m £m 
commitments for capital expenditure not provided for in these accounts
contracts placed for future expenditure — 11 
contingent liabilities 
litigation 
the group is a defendant in a small number of lawsuits incidental to its operations which in aggregate are not expected to have a material adverse effect 
on the group
financial statements 
• annual report and accounts 2008 94
notes to the consolidated financial statements
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trading subsidiary undertakings country of registration incorporation and operation
ssl australia pty limited australia
ssl healthcare oesterreich gmbh austria
nv ssl healthcare belgium sa belgium
ssl canada inc canada
ssl czeska republika sro czech republic
ssl healthcare danmark as denmark
ssl products limited england
london international group limited england
lrc products limited england
scholl limited england
scholl consumer products limited england
scholl investments limited england
scholl uk limited england
sonet scholl overseas investments limited england
sonet scholl uk limited england
sonet prebbles limited  england
sonet investments limited  england
t ubifoam limited england
ssl healthcare france sa france
ssl healthcare deutschland gmbh  co kg germany
ssl healthcare gmbh germany
london international gmbh germany
ssl hellas sa greece
simco limited guernsey
ssl healthcare hong kong limited hong kong
ssl magyarorszag kereskedelmi kft hungary
ssl ttk limited india
ttklig limited india
seton scholl ireland holdings limited ireland
seton scholl international ireland ireland
ssl healthcare ireland limited ireland
ssl healthcare italia spa italy
ssl healthcare japan limited japan
lig china bv netherlands
ssl healthcare nederland bv netherlands
new bridge holdings bv netherlands
seton scholl european holdings bv netherlands
ssl new zealand limited new zealand
ssl healthcare norgeas norway
london international norway as norway
qingdao london durex company limited people’s republic of china
ssl healthcare polska sp zoo poland
ssl romania srl romania
ssl healthcare singapore pte limited singapore
ssl slovensko spol sro slovakia
ssl healthcare brands sa spain
ssl sverige ab sweden
ssl healthcare suisse sa switzerland
ssl manufacturing thailand limited thailand
ssl healthcare thailand limited thailand
lrc products ticaret ve pazarlama limited sirketi t urkey
ssl americas inc usa
ssl holdings inc usa
lrc north america inc usa
the group holds 100 per cent of the equity capital of the above companies with the exception of ssl ttk limited in which the group effectively holds 
75 4 per cent and ttklig limited in which the group holds 4987 per cent ttklig limited is consolidated as the group exerts a dominant influence over 
the company 
in january 2007  the group completed the purchase of the remaining 50 per cent of the shares it did not already own in its joint venture qingdao london
durex company limited for the purchase price of us37 5 million prior to this date the entity was accounted for as an associated undertaking of the group
qingdao london durex company limited has a year end of 31 december as required by local law figures included in the consolidation are based upon
audited results for the 12month period ended 31 march 2008
 shares are held directly by ssl international plc
principal group undertakings
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2008 2007
note £m £m 
fixed assets
intangible assets i 63 59 
t angible assets ii 01 02 
investments iii 5918 5908 
5982 5969 
current assets
debtors iv 1591 734 
cash 157 130 
1748 864 
creditors due within one year 
financial liabilities v 1231 405 
other creditors vi 5278 4152 
6509 4557
net current liabilities 4761 3693 
t otal assets less current liabilities 1221 2276 
creditors due after more than one year
financial liabilities v 08 736 
provisions for liabilities vii 01 02 
net assets 1212 1538 
capital and reserves
called up share capital ix 191 190 
share premium account x 440 432 
other reserves x 465 455 
cash flow hedge reserve x 07 — 
profit and loss account x 123 461 
equity shareholders’ funds x 1212 1538 
see accompanying notes to the company financial statements 
the financial statements on pages 96 to 103 were approved by the board of directors on 19 may 2008 and were signed on its behalf by
m moran 
director 
financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 96
company balance sheet 
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97
company accounting policies
as used in the financial statements and related notes the term
‘company’ refers to ssl international plc the separate financial statements
of the company are presented as required by the companies act 1985 and
under uk generally accepted accounting practices
a list of principal subsidiary undertakings is presented on page 87 
basis of preparation
the separate financial statements of the company are presented as
required by the companies act 1985 as permitted by the act the separate
financial statements have been prepared in accordance with uk generally
accepted accounting practices ‘uk gaap’ the accounting policies under
uk gaap are presented below
the financial statements have been prepared on the historical cost
basis with the exception of financial instruments as described below the
principal accounting policies adopted are set out below in accordance with
section 2304 of the companies act 1985 the company has elected not to
present its own profit and loss account the profit for the financial year dealt
with in the financial statements of the parent company ssl international plc
is disclosed in note x the company has taken the exemption from the
requirement to prepare a cash flow statement under the terms of frs 1
revised 1996 ‘cash flow statements’
the following paragraphs describe the main accounting policies 
these policies have been consistently applied to all the years presented
a t angible fixed assets
t angible fixed assets are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation
depreciation is provided to write tangible fixed assets down to a residual value
over their estimated useful economic lives at the following annual rates
plant and equipment is depreciated on a straightline basis over a period
of between 4—15 years
b intangible assets
software developments and licences capitalised are stated at cost less
accumulated amortisation and are amortised on a straightline basis over
their estimated useful economic lives as follows
—software development 5—10 years
—software licences over the length of the licence
c investments
investments in subsidiaries are stated at cost less provisions for 
any impairment
d t axation
the charge for taxation is based on the lossprofit for the year and takes
into account taxation deferred because of timing differences between the
treatment of certain items for taxation and accounting purposes
credit is taken for advance corporation tax written off in previous years
when it is recovered against corporation tax liabilities 
in accordance with frs 19 deferred tax is provided where a taxation
liability will arise as a result of transactions or events which have occurred by
the balance sheet date deferred tax assets are recognised to the extent that
it is regarded that they will be recovered provision is made at rates expected
to be applicable when the liabilities or assets are likely to crystallise
e foreign currencies
t ransactions in foreign currencies are recorded using the rate of
exchange ruling at the date of the transaction monetary assets and liabilities
denominated in foreign currencies are translated using the rate of exchange
ruling at the balance sheet date gains or losses on transactions are included
in the profit and loss account
f derivative financial instruments
in accordance with exemptions under frs 29 ‘financial instruments
disclosures’ the company has not presented the financial instruments
disclosures required by the standard as disclosures which comply with the
standard are included in the consolidated financial statements
the company uses derivative financial instruments to reduce exposure
to foreign exchange risk and interest rate movements the company does
not hold or issue derivative financial instruments for speculative purposes
with the exception of derivative financial instruments and those hedged
items forming part of a fair value hedge financial instruments are held at
amortised cost
hedge accounting
the accounting for the company’s various hedging activities is 
detailed below
i t ransaction exposure hedging
forward currency contracts hedging transaction exposures are fair
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f derivative financial instruments continued
ii fair value hedges
derivative financial instruments are classified as fair value hedges 
when they hedge the company’s exposure to changes in the fair value of a
recognised asset or liability any gain or loss from remeasuring the hedging
instrument is recognised immediately in the profit and loss account any
change in the fair value of the hedged item attributable to the hedged risk 
is adjusted against the carrying value of the hedged item and recognised
immediately in the profit and loss account
derivative financial instruments qualifying for fair value hedge
accounting are principally foreign currency and interest rate swaps
iii cash flow hedges
derivative financial instruments are classified as cash flow hedges 
when they hedge the company’s exposure to variability in cash flows that is
attributable to a particular risk associated with a recognised asset or liability 
changes in the fair value of the derivative hedging instrument designated
as a cash flow hedge are recognised directly in equity to the extent that the
hedge is effective t o the extent the hedge is ineffective changes in fair value
are recognised in profit or loss
discontinuance of hedge accounting
hedge accounting is discontinued prospectively when the hedging
instrument expires or is sold terminated or exercised or no longer qualifies
for hedge accounting 
financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 98
company accounting policies
continued
g sharebased payments
the company operates a number of employee share schemes the cost
to the company of making awards in the form of shares or rights to shares
under these schemes is charged to the profit and loss account as an
employee expense over the period to which the employees’ performance
relates the company issues equity settled sharebased payments to
certain employees of the company and its subsidiary undertakings equity
settled sharebased payments are measured at fair value at the grant date
using an appropriate valuation model taking into account the terms and
conditions precedent at the time of grant the impact of any nonmarket
vesting conditions is excluded
the total amount to be expensed over the vesting period is determined
by reference to the fair value of the equity instruments granted and the
number of equity instruments which eventually vest at each balance sheet
date the company revises its estimate of the number of instruments that
are expected to vest it recognises the impact of the revision of original
estimates if any in the profit and loss account and a corresponding
adjustment to equity over the remaining period when awards are made to
employees of subsidiary undertakings and the fair value of the award is not
recharged to the subsidiary the award is treated as a capital contribution 
to the subsidiary with a corresponding increase in the cost of investment 
h dividend income
dividend income from subsidiary undertakings is recognised within
other income at the point the dividend has been declared dividends
declared after the balance sheet date are not recognised in the profit and
loss account
i related party transactions
the company has taken advantage of the exemption available in frs 8
‘related party disclosures’ and has not disclosed transactions or balances
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i intangible assets
software
development
and licences
£m 
cost
at 1 april  2007 60 
additions 19 
at 31 march 2008 79 
amortisation and impairment amounts 
at 1 april 2007 01 
charge for the year 15 
at 31 march 2008 16 
carrying amounts 
at 31 march 2007 59 
at 31 march 2008 63
ii t angible assets
plant
equipment and
motor vehicles
£m 
cost
at 1 april 2007 268 
disposals 258 
at 31 march 2008 10 
depreciation and impairment 
at 1 april 2007 266 
charge for the year 01 
disposals 258 
at 31 march 2008 09 
net book value 
at 31 march 2007 02 
at 31 march 2008  01
99
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iii investments in subsidiary undertakings
the company’s investments are as follows 
cost of shares
in subsidiary
undertakings
£m 
cost at 31 march 2007 5908 
additions 10
cost at 31 march 2008 5918 
net book value 
at 31 march 2007 5908 
at 31 march 2008 5918 
the company’s investments are listed on page 95 the addition of £1 million during the year represents an increased investment in the subsidiary company
lrc products limited in relation to the fair value of sharebased payments awarded to employees of the subsidiary undertaking a corresponding credit is
recorded in nondistributable reserves
iv debtors
2008 2007
note £m £m 
amounts due within one year 
amounts owed by subsidiary undertakings 1530 687 
other debtors 05 — 
prepayments and accrued income 13 05 
1548 692 
amounts due after more than one year 
deferred tax viii 43 42 
1591 734 
financial statements • annual report and accounts 2008 100
notes relating to the company accounts
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v financial liabilities 
2008 2007
£m £m
amounts due within one year 
bank loans and overdrafts 1231 356 
loan notes — 31 
obligations under finance leases — 02 
forward contract derivatives — 03 
interest rate and currency swaps — 13 
1231 405 
amounts due after more than one year   
loan notes — 641 
interest rate and currency swaps 08 95 
08 736 
t otal financial liabilities 1239 1141 
details of banking facilities available are provided in note 15 to the consolidated financial statements
loan maturities 
2008 2007
£m £m 
loan notes
loan note or instalments thereof are repayable 
after 5 years from the balance sheet date — 59 
from 3—4 years — — 
from 2—3 years — 555 
from 1—2 years — 27 
t otal due after more than one year — 641 
t otal due within one year — 31 
— 672 
obligations under finance lease 
obligations under finance lease or instalments thereof are repayable 
t otal due within one year — 02 
— 02 
interest rate and currency swaps 
interest rate and currency swaps or instalments thereof are repayable 
from 2—3 years 08 84 
from 1—2 years — 11 
t otal due after more than one year 08 95 
t otal due within one year — 13 
08 108 
the aggregate amount of loans any instalment of which falls due after 5 years is £nil 2007 £59 million 
the loan notes were repaid in november 2007  and the related swaps settled at that time following the announcement of the european supply chain
restructuring programme as explained in note 2 to the consolidated financial statements
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t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
vi creditors
2008 2007
£m £m 
amounts due within one year 
amounts owed to subsidiary undertakings 5195 4051 
corporate taxation 21 22 
accruals 62 79 
5278 4152 
vii provisions for liabilities
surplus property
£m 
at 1 april 2007 02 
provisions used during the year 01 
at 31 march 2008 01 
current 01 
noncurrent — 
01 
the provisions are expected to be utilised within seven years from the balance sheet date
viii deferred tax
deferred
taxation
£m 
at 1 april 2007 42 
charged to the profit and loss account 02 
credited to reserves in respect of sharebased payments 03 
at 31 march 2008 43 
2008 2007
the net deferred tax asset is analysed as follows £m £m 
accelerated capital allowances 16 24 
shortterm timing differences 02 03 
sharebased payments 29 21 
43 42
ix calledup share capital
called up £010 ordinary share capital of the parent company
allotted allotted
calledup calledup
authorised and fully paid authorised and fully paid
no no £m £m 
at 1 april  2007 250000000190464924 250 190 
employee share options schemes — options exercised — 362571 — 01 
at 31 march 2008 250000000190827495 250 191 
details of share options exercised in the year and contingently issuable shares awarded in the year are given in the group financial statements in note 18
details of rights attached to shares are included in the group financial statements in note 19
financial statements 
• annual report and accounts 2008 102
notes relating to the company accounts
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x share capital and reserves
share non cash flow
share premium distributable hedge profit and loss total
capital account reserve reserve account equity
£m £m £m £m £m £m
at 1 april 2007 190 432 455 — 461 1538 
loss for the year — — — — 242 242 
dividends — — — — 133 133 
sharebased payments — — 10 — 34 44 
t axation taken to reserves in respect of sharebased payments — — — — 03 03 
fair values arising from cash flow hedge taken to reserves — — — 07 — 07 
shares issued in the year 01 08 — — — 09 
at 31 march 2008 191 440 465 07 123 1212 
of the reserves of the company £ 123 million 2007 461 million is regarded as distributable 
the £10 million increase in the nondistributable reserve during the year relates to the sharebased payments awarded to employees of the subsidiary
undertaking lrc products limited which has been treated as a capital contribution to the subsidiary undertaking
by virtue of section 230 of the companies act 1985 the company is exempt from presenting a profit and loss account
the shares issued during the year were issued to satisfy exercise of options under the various share schemes outlined in note 18 to the group accounts
xi commitments and contingent liabilities
the company has no contracts for future expenditure that have not been provided for 2007 none
guarantee contracts 
where the company enters into financial guarantee contracts to guarantee the indebtedness of other companies within its group the company considers
these to be insurance arrangements and accounts for them as such in this respect the company treats the guarantee contract as a contingent liability until
such time as it becomes probable that the company will be required to make a payment under the guarantee at the balance sheet date there were no
contingent liabilities arising as a result of these guarantees 2007 none
xii directors’ remuneration and sharebased payments
the company has no employees other than the directors information covering directors’ remuneration interests in shares share options and pension
benefits is included in the remuneration report on pages 39 to 45
the information as disclosed in the group accounts under ifrs 2 ‘sharebased payment’ is comparable with the uk gaap information under frs 20 
‘sharebased payment’
the following directors were remunerated by the parent company
— g watts
— a catalano
— g corbett
— r adam
— p read
— s murray
— m moran
— i adamson
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shareholder information • annual report and accounts 2008 104
ssl directory
commercial
uk and eire
head office 
ssl international plc
35 new bridge street london ec4v 6bw
ssl international plc
venus 1 old park lane t rafford park urmston manchester m41 7ha
ssl healthcare ireland limited
monarch industrial estate belgard road dublin 24
continental europe 
austria
ssl healthcare osterreich gmbh kuefsteingasse 1519220a
a1140 vienna austria
belgium
nv ssl healthcare sa koning albert 1 laan 64 1780 wemmel belgium
czech republic
ssl czeska republica sro karlovo nam 7  120 00 prague 2 czech republic
denmark
ssl healthcare denmark as ringager 4 d dk2605 brøndby denmark
finland
ssl healthcare suomi oy harmaaparrankuja1 fin02200 espoo finland
france 
ssl healthcare france sa ssl healthcare france 23 allees de leurope
92588 clichy cedex france
germany
ssl healthcare deutschland gmbh  co kg edisonstrasse 5 
63477 maintal germany
greece
ssl hellas sa  17 kim spata avenue po box 17  19004 spata attikis
athens greece
hungary
ssl magyarorszag kft ip west office building 1117 budapest 
budafoki út 9193 1st floor hungary
italy
ssl healthcare italia spa via marco emilio lepido 1785 
40132 bologna italy
italy
 footwear development group
ssl healthcare italia spa
fdgfootwear development group
strada statale 234km 385 26867  somaglia lodi italy
netherlands
ssl healthcare nedeland nv de weegschaal  14
5215 mns hertogenbosch netherlands
norway
ssl healthcare norway as strandveien 35 no1366 lysaker norway
poland
ssl healthcare polska spz 00 ubc ll ulszturmowa 2a
02678 warsaw poland
romania 
ssl romania srl
blvd decebal nr1 blh2sc5et6ap 141143
sector 3 bucharest romania
spain
ssl healthcare brands sa c de la marina 1618 t orre mapfre planta 28
08005 barcelona spain
sweden
ssl healthcare sverige abx box 1326 se171 26 solna sweden
switzerland
ssl healthcare schweiz ag rheinstrasse 81 4133 pratteln
switzerland 
t urkey 
lrc products ticaret ve pazarlama ltd sti oztopus cadessi demirel apt
8d5 ulus 34340 besiktas istanbul t urkey
americas
ssl canada inc
100 courtland avenue concord ontario l4k 3t6 canada
ssl americas inc
3585 engineering drive suite 200 norcross georgia 300929214 usa
asia pacific and rest of the w orld 
australia
ssl australia pty ltd 225 beach road mordialloc victoria 3195 australia
china
ssl healthcare shanghai ltd room 1905 
zhongrong hengrui international building 620 zhang yang road pu dong
shanghai 200122 people’s republic of china
hong kong
ssl healthcare hong kong ltd rm 1201a admiralty centre t ower one
18 harcourt road hong kong
india
ssl ttk limited 6 cathedral road chennai 600 086 india
indonesia
ssl healthcare indonesia graha atrium building 6fl suite 602c
jl senen raya no135 jakarta pusat  10410 indonesia
japan
ssl healthcare japan ltd urd building 4th  5th floor 275 shibuya
shibuyaku t okyo 1500002 japan
malaysia
ssl healthcare malaysia sdn bhd level 5 wisma samudra 1 jalan
kontraktor u114 seksyen u1 hicomglenmarie industrial park 
40150 shah alam selangor darul ehsan malaysia
new zealand
ssl new zealand ltd c54 carbine road mt wellington auckland 
new zealand
singapore
ssl healthcare singapore pte ltd 34 boon leat t errace singapore 119866
t aiwan
ssl healthcare t aiwan ltd 14 f no 102 songlong road sinyi district 
t aipei city 110  t aiwan
thailand
ssl healthcare thailand limited 14th floor ocean t ower 1 
17042 new ratchadaphisek road klongtoey bangkok 10110 thailand ttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt
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manufacturing and distribution
uk and guernsey
simco limited
charwell house braye road industrial estate vale guernsey 
channel islands gy3 5xa
ssl international plc 
barncoose industrial estate wilson way redruth cornwall tr15 3rq
ssl international plc 
group distribution centre finlan road stakehill industrial estate 
middleton m24 2sj
ssl international plc 
whitehouse business park t raynor way off shotton lane peterlee
county durham sr8 2ru
americas
ssl americas logistics operations center
1306 george albert lake road anderson south carolina 29624 usa
asia pacific and rest of the w orld 
china
qingdao london durex company limited 
103 t aidong 1st road qingdao 266022 people’s republic of china
india
ttklig limited 
35 old t runk road pallavaram chennai600 043 india
ttklig limited 
20 perali road virudhunagar  626 001 t amilnadu state india
ttklig limited 
652 653 632 k p natham road thiruvandar koil village 
mannadipet commune puducheri india
ssl ttk limited
plot 73 sipcot industrial park irungattukottai 602105 
sriperumbudur india
thailand
ssl manufacturing thailand limited 
wellgrow industrial estate 100 moo 5 bangna t rad rd km36 bangsamak
bangpakong chachoengsao 24180 thailand
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shareholder information • annual report and accounts 2008 106
company information financial calendar
secretary and registered office
maria buxtonsmith
35 new bridge street london ec4v 6bw
stockbrokers
jpmorgan cazenove limited
20 moorgate london ec2r 6da
credit suisse
one cabot square london e14 4oj
auditors
kpmg audit plc
8 salisbury square london ec4y 8bb
solicitors
allen  overy
one bishop square london e1 6ao
hammonds
t rinity court 16 john dalton street manchester m60 8hs
principal bankers
barclays bank plc
7th floor 1 marsden street manchester m2 1hw
registrars
capita registrars
the registry 34 beckenham road beckenham kent br3 4tu
public affairs advisers
the maitland consultancy
12th floor orion house 5 upper st martin’s lane london wc2h 9ea
month  y ear event
2008
24 july annual general meeting
4 september dividend payment subject to approval
november interim results
2009
march interim dividend payment
may preliminary results
july annual general meeting
 exact dates to be confirmed ttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt
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the following is a nonexhaustive list 
of the trade marks of the ssl group
adapta
allure
avanti
bioprint
cuprofen
derbac
diana
diocalm
dr scholl
due in uno
durex
eulactol
fetherlite
fresh step
full marks
gelactiv
hydragel
massage melts
medised
meltus
mister baby
natruclear
orthaheel
paramol
party feet
perfect nail
performa
pescura
play
play o
pleasuremax
prosport
ralgex
realcheck
remegel
resolve
sauber
scholl
scholl flight socks
spring action
syndol
ultima
very cherry
vibrations
woodward’s
t rade marks
107 ttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt
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designed by pauffley
printed in the uk by beacon press using their and
environmental print technology the electricity used in the printing of this
report was generated from renewable sources and vegetable inks were 
used throughout beacon press is a carbonneutral® company
both printer and the paper mill are registered to the environmental
management system iso 14001 and are forest stewardship council fsc
chainofcustody certified  ssl international plc
35 new bridge street
london ec4v 6bw
t el 44 020  7367  5760
f ax 44  020  7367  5790
wwwsslinternationalcom
registration number
388828


Summary:
 06 in brief 
• annual report and accounts 2008
innovation
expansion
and control  07
why are you placing high emphasis on the importance of innovation 
innovation is the lifeblood of our business and is critical to driving organic sales growth it is
important that we understand what our consumers want through indepth research by combining the
expertise of our own innovation teams and working in partnership with third parties such as academic
institutions we believe we are strengthening our new product pipeline across all our brands
the durex brand has continued to perform well over the past few years how can you
continue this expansion
the launch of the durex play range in 2003 has been a key factor in developing the brand as we
move its positioning from ‘safe sex’ to sexual wellbeing this year we introduced the durex play t ouch
vibrator and durex play ultra a vibrating stimulation ring w e are also introducing a range of massage
products building on the success of durex play 2 in 1 gel with durex play 2 in 1 massage melts 
and mousse and are launching durex play o a clitoral stimulating gel to help women have more
satisfying orgasms
what new products have you developed to drive the growth of scholl footcare
scholl footcare has continued to perform well as a result of a steady flow of new innovative
products which meet people’s needs are efficacious and are well communicated to both the trade
and consumers our most recent successes include scholl cracked heel repair cream — a clinically
proven solution for repairing dry cracked skin on heels and most recently perfect nail t reatment 
or nail brightening system as it is known in the uk which treats brittle discoloured toenails perfect
nail has just been launched in a number of our markets and is supported by strong media and 
pointofsale advertising campaigns
with a growth rate of 10 per cent you appear to have turned around the scholl footwear
business how are you doing it
the steps we have taken in defining our distributionled strategy for scholl footwear in europe
have reaped rewards this has given greater clarity and focus as we expand into new high street shoe
trade channels whilst maintaining our excellent market share position in the traditional pharmacy
sector we have improved upon our existing footbed technology with bioprint and ensured we have
clear range differentiation for each of our distribution channels
what benefits do you expect from the manufacturing restructuring you have undertaken 
this year
closure of any operation is always a difficult decision however by closing the durex condom
factory in spain and transferring production to our other facilities in the asia pacific region we expect
to improve margins from 200809 onwards as the result of lower labour costs by consolidating
chief 
executive’s
review
sales
0708
0607
0506
at constant exchange rates and including 100 of the china 
business in all three years
£5339m
£4993m
£4616m
operating profit
0708
0607
0506
at constant exchange rates  including 100 of the china business 
in all three years and before oneoff restructuring charges
£68 1m
£61 1m
£523m 08 in brief 
• annual report and accounts 2008
pharmaceutical manufacture into a single inhouse supply point we can eliminate duplicated
activities and reduce transport costs
since you acquired the remaining share of the business in china last year you appear 
to be investing further  how does this support your growth plans
as we all know the expanding economy in china represents a huge opportunity particularly as
consumers in the major towns and cities become wealthier and desire premium global brands we
already have a solid base for durex in china and this year we have seen sales there grow by 35 per cent
establishing and widening our distribution platform to build upon our successes with durex and
developing our scholl business is key for growth in addition we are investing around £20 million in the
construction of a stateoftheart condom facility which will be an important point of supply for 
the domestic and global markets
y ou have started your acquisition trail what will this bring and what is next
we now have the resources to make acquisitions to grow our business — a strong balance 
sheet and a talented management team who are well capable of integrating new businesses into 
our existing infrastructure the key is to make acquisitions that complement our current distribution
channels and sales and marketing structure and also create a diversity to develop our business —
whether this is through new geographies or new products and technologies in november 2007 
we acquired orthaheel a range of orthotic insoles which alter foot alignment to provide greater
cushioning and support for feet — a great fit with our existing scholl footcare range and which brings
new technologies into our business more recently we have made a small but important investment 
in eastern europe and the cis in may we completed the acquisition of 155 per cent of a company
which owns and distributes the contex condom brand and we have options to buy the remaining
shares over the next two years meanwhile we continue to review other acquisition opportunities and
evaluate these against our stringent criteria to ensure we are making the right investment decisions
how are you looking to provide development opportunities for your employees
without the enthusiasm commitment and hard work of our employees across all our operations
we would not be seeing the success that we have achieved over the past few years i would like to take
this opportunity to thank them for their contribution to delivering our business growth it is important
that we invest in their continuing professional and personal development by offering a wide range of
training courses covering technical and lifestyle skills and enhancing business awareness also we seek
to provide new experiences such as through our partnership with students partnership worldwide 
“w e have the resources to make
acquisitions to grow our business 
— a strong balance sheet and a
talented management team”
garry watts
chief executive