Press release • June 2023
Thanks to a solid exhibition program and impressive visitor numbers at ARoS, the museum’s 2022 annual report is a testimony to the museum having achieved financial stability. It also outlines an ambitious vision for the museum after a couple of challenging years.
The total income of the museum in 2022 was DKK 75 million, which exceeded the budget by DKK 6 million and resulted in profits of DKK 1.2 million.
“I am happy to see that we have exceeded our financial goals as well as our visitor number targets, even though we kicked off 2022 with COVID-19 closures,” says Director Rebecca Matthews, for whom 2022 was her first full year fronting the museum.
In 2022, 514,332 people bought tickets for ARoS, which was 200,000 more than in 2021 – and almost 2019-level visitor numbers, prior to the COVID-19 closures.
“Many cultural institutions have struggled to get guests and visitors back after COVID-19, so I am relieved to once again see our galleries, café and shop filled with visitors. Especially the last exhibitions of 2022 drew big audiences, so I am feeling optimistic about 2023,” says Rebecca Matthews.
The annual report also reveals that the commercial departments of the museum have achieved solid results for 2022, and that people now spend more money when they visit the museum than they previously did.
Increased equity and focus on professionalization
As an organization, ARoS has gone through a process of professionalization throughout 2022: A new board has been appointed, and museum management now consists of an artistic director as well as a director of HR and finance, alongside the director.
Additionally, the director has had one-on-one conversations with more than a hundred of the museum’s employees, and an extensive involvement process has resulted in the museum’s first 10-year vision. The latter will be presented in early June 2023.
ARoS has also increased its equity to DKK 6 million in 2022.
”If there is one thing that COVID-19 has taught us, it is the importance of having a stable financial foundation to withstand unpredictable events. Such a foundation is also a necessity to be able to make large future investments, and this is why our goal is to reach an equity of DKK 10 million,” says board chair Laura Hay Uggla.
On June 15th 2022, construction of ARoS’ extension, The Next Level, began, and it is expected to be ready for visitors in 2025.
For more information, please contact:
Astrid Illdor · asil@aros.dk · +45 61 90 49 42