Source:
https://www.bizportal.co.il/capitalmarket/news/article/20017125
“Countries want to equip themselves with defense systems regardless of active wars,” says NextVision Chairman Chen Golan. Regarding the company’s high gross profitability (above 70%), he adds: “It will be hard for competitors to enter the market with lower prices than ours.”
With 33% growth in revenue and a 41% increase in net profit in Q1, NextVision is off to a strong start in 2025, amid its ambitious goal of reaching $160 million in annual revenue. It’s a bold target for an Israeli company that leads the field in thermal and electro-optical cameras for drones and unmanned systems—and it plans to get there while maintaining over 70% gross margin and continuing to develop new products.
Chairman Chen Golan is confident this is achievable thanks to strong market demand, operational flexibility, and increasing production efficiency.
In the first quarter, NextVision posted $36.2 million in revenue, $22.2 million in operating profit, and an order backlog that jumped to $123 million. But beyond the numbers, Golan emphasizes the real growth drivers: investment in R&D and the launch of breakthrough cameras—including the new Condor model, which is expected to be a game-changer in the market.
In an interview with Bizportal, he discusses the company’s challenges, opportunities, and threats—including reliance on key customers, global de-escalation trends, and the need to grow through strategic acquisitions.
🔹 How was the last quarter?
“We’re continuing to work hard. We’re expanding the production floor and optimizing processes to avoid raising prices for our customers while maintaining margins.
Our 2025 goal will be met — and if anything changes, we’ll update accordingly. Usually, our forecasts are revised upward.
What’s special about us is that we bring 2–3 new products to market each year. We’ve expanded the 360 line, which has a real market need.
The highlight is the Condor, a completely new camera that we’re about to showcase at a trade show. It’s positioned between the Raptor and Raven lines and is cooled. It offers 80% greater detection range than the Raptor — that’s significant. We’ve added more capabilities. It’s a game-changer in terms of performance, weight (1.5 kg), and pricing. The development isn’t complete yet, but we believe there will be strong demand.
We’ve already sold the first unit, which is currently under evaluation. We’re also expanding our team in both R&D and production.”
🔹 What about mergers and acquisitions?
“We’re working on that. It’s a tough world. You need to find the right opportunity — the right price, and a willing partner.
There are a few things in the pipeline, but we only report once things are finalized.”
🔹 There’s a sense of easing tensions in conflict zones. How might this affect NextVision?
“Everyone is talking about the end of war, and I truly hope that happens.
But at the same time, we’re not blind to reality.
Some people get anxious when peace is mentioned — but that’s not the right reaction. There will still be moving platforms, with or without war, and there will still be demand for NextVision products.
All militaries are starting to equip themselves for their own preparedness, not just for war.
We’re seeing strong demand.
We’ve raised our reporting threshold to $2 million, so many incoming orders are not yet reflected in reports.”
🔹 How much of the backlog is short-term vs. long-term?
“That’s not publicly disclosed, but there’s a rule of thumb: 70/30.
Roughly 70% of the backlog is for delivery within 12 months, and 30% is for 24 months or longer.
We said we’d hit $160 million in sales, and we will.”
🔹 How will you maintain over 70% gross margin long-term?
“We wake up every morning and do the best we can.
It largely depends on the product mix, so it may fluctuate slightly.”
🔹 The market is evolving. New competitors are entering. Won’t customers say your prices are too high?
“NextVision grew 40% in revenue while expanding the team by only 20%, which means we’re efficient.
If a competitor tries to undercut us, they’ll have a tough time.
Our prices are already low.
If someone wants to enter the market and compete on price, we know how to handle that too.”
🔹 You wrote in your report that you’ve improved workforce efficiency. What does that mean?
“In 2024, we grew 120%, but our workforce grew by only 30%.
That means each employee is now producing more than double compared to last year.
Our operational improvements are helping employees produce more cameras per day.”
🔹 How much longer can you sustain this growth rate?
“A few more years. The market demand is there.
Like any growing company, we know that organic growth becomes harder as the numbers increase, so we’re looking for acquisitions to help us grow, so that the whole will be greater than the sum of its parts.”
🔹 Are you looking to acquire technology or expand backlog and geographic reach?
“We’re open to all options and evaluating everything.”
🔹 A lot of revenue comes from Europe, but the U.S. still hasn’t reached its full potential. When will that change?
“It’s a process. Companies start working with us, and over time they order more.
That market is growing steadily, and we see strong demand.
Europe is at war, and despite official declarations, the pace of procurement reflects that.
I hope the U.S. takes the lead. One thing pushing Europe is Trump’s statement about no longer supporting Europe militarily — that almost immediately led to increased defense budgets.”
🔹 You have two major customers. Isn’t that a risk?
“We support our customers and provide excellent products.
Consider a client that makes up 17% of our sales — they’ve already integrated our systems and rely on us.
Replacing us would not be simple. They’d have to start over with a new vendor. That’s very difficult — especially for large clients.
I’m not naïve — they might have other suppliers, but at these volumes, something drastic would have to happen for them to switch. I don’t think that’s the case.”
🔹 How do you explain the drop in cash flow alongside increased inventory?
“At NextVision, we always look ahead to the next bottleneck — what might delay us from delivering on time.
Sometimes we make large purchases to support sales 6–12 months ahead, depending on the component.
For certain components, we chose to increase inventory to reduce risk.
Inventory costs money, of course — it’s a trade-off.
But we will not allow supply delays. That’s why we build up inventory.
Inventory today helps mitigate risk.”
🔹 Is this just about risk, or is it also about upcoming orders?
“It’s a combination of both.”
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