The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
FRANKFURT, Germany — German fashion house Hugo Boss reported a 5 percent increase in currency-adjusted sales in the fourth-quarter, driven by a rebound in growth at its own stores, a jump in online sales and a recovery in the United States.
After a string of profit warnings, Hugo Boss has been slashing prices in China to bring them closer to European and US levels, making efforts to appeal to younger customers, investing in its website and closing loss-making stores.
Hugo Boss said sales rose 1 percent to 735 million euros ($902.14 million), compared with average analyst forecasts for €732 million, according to Thomson Reuters Eikon. It reports full figures for the quarter on March 8.
It said sales from its own retail business rose 7 percent in the quarter on a same-store basis, and it saw growth of 11 percent in the United States, where it has been making efforts to move the brand more upmarket by stopping selling in discount outlets.
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It also said online sales, which had fallen in the first quarter, jumped 42 percent after it moved to improve its website, boost its ranking on search engines and offer more lower-priced garments.
Hugo Boss said it expects its 2017 earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) before special items to come in at about the €493 million it reported for 2016, in line with its forecast.
By Christoph Steitz and Emma Thomasson; editor: Louise Heavens
The luxury goods maker is seeking pricing harmonisation across the globe, and adjusts prices in different markets to ensure that the company is”fair to all [its] clients everywhere,” CEO Leena Nair said.
Hermes saw Chinese buyers snap up its luxury products as the Kelly bag maker showed its resilience amid a broader slowdown in demand for the sector.
The group’s flagship Prada brand grew more slowly but remained resilient in the face of a sector-wide slowdown, with retail sales up 7 percent.
The guidance was issued as the French group released first-quarter sales that confirmed forecasts for a slowdown. Weak demand in China and poor performance at flagship Gucci are weighing on the group.