Figures better than expected: H&M is thinning out branch network despite recovery

After the business slump in the spring, the world's second largest fashion chain is spreading optimism. Although the corona crisis is not over yet, H&M assumes that the worst is behind you. But even if revenues improve, a number of stores will have to close.

The Swedish fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz (H&M), hit by the corona crisis, wants to thin out its branch network. In the coming year, the bottom line is that the number of stores will shrink by around 250, as the company announced when it presented its final figures for the third fiscal quarter, which ended in August.

HM 15.51

The Group's recovery from the crisis continues. As already known, the retailer managed to return to the black in the summer quarter after H&M posted losses in the second quarter, which was particularly hard hit by the pandemic. "Although the challenges for us are far from over, the worst should be behind us," said CEO Helena Helmersson. Business is recovering faster than expected.

"We have seen strong and profitable growth in online business and more and more stores are now reopening." The reason for the profit are "higher quality collections", fewer discounts and cost reductions, explained H&M. The group also includes the chains COS, Weekday, Cheap Monday, Monki, & Other Stories and Arket. Afound is brand new.

Currently, 166 of the total of around 5000 H&M branches are still closed, it said. At the end of the quarter, more than 200 stores had not yet resumed operations. However, the pandemic also had a heavy impact on the third quarter. As already known, the group had turned over around 50.9 billion Swedish kronor (around 4.83 billion euros) in the reporting period; calculated in the respective national currencies, that was a decline of 16 percent. After taxes, the profit has more than halved to 1.82 billion crowns. For September, H&M reported a decline in revenues of five percent.

. (tagsToTranslate) Economy (t) Quarterly figures (t) Textile industry (t) Fashion (t) H&M