a day ago
H&M results: sales and profits down but CEO talks of progress, COS is strong
Gross profit was SEK58.59 billion, down from SEK61.2 billion with a gross margin of 52.3%, down from 54%. Operating profit dropped to SEK7.11 billion from SEK9.17 billion and net profit fell to SEK4.54 billion from almost SEK 6.3 billion.
Despite the fairly anaemic results, CEO Daniel Ervér talked of 'progress' in key areas and said that 'our plan, with its focus on the product offering, the shopping experience and brand, is again confirmed by the progress we see. The positive development in important areas such as online, H&M womenswear and H&M Move, as well as continued focus on good cost control, will contribute to a profitable sales development.'
Unusually, given that H&M rarely mentions its other brands in such results announcements, he said: 'Portfolio brands also grew in the quarter and COS has developed particularly well. Some measures have a faster impact than others, but the direction is clear and during the year we continue to implement improvements in other parts of the business.'
He sees further reasons for optimism with actions such as the company opening its first stores and offering online shopping in Brazil (a country with a population of more than 200 million) early in the second half as a prime example of positive developments.
The CEO also said that the Q2 figures need to be seen in the light on Q2 in 2024 being particularly strong so the comparisons have got tougher.
