It’s quite a symbol. The emblem of the sale of ready-to-wear items (clothing and accessories, shoes) by internet Zalando plunged 18% to the lowest of the morning of this Friday at the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, before recovering gradually afterwards.
In question, a warning launched on the results of the second quarter and a lowering of the forecasts for the whole of the year. In an environment that is now more difficult and after recent updates from other players in the sector, such as the British Asos and Boohoo, today’s alert comes as no surprise to the financial community. ” We expected a warning and a bad second quarter, but it’s much worse than we feared “Nevertheless admits a German trader, interviewed by Reuters.
Fewer sales and profits
For the whole of 2022, Zalando is now targeting revenue growth of between 0% and 3%, compared to a range of 3% to 7% previously, accompanied by an adjusted operating profit of 180 to 260 million. euros, well below the 430 to 510 million previously anticipated. The results of the second quarter will be significantly lower than analysts’ expectations, no additional details being advanced. These three months will not, however, be in deficit.
Beyond a logical trend towards normalization in the e-commerce sector, after two years boosted by the multiple confinements linked to the Covid-19 pandemic, the current price spike in Europe is having a strong impact on the behavior consumers, explains the German ready-to-wear group.
Sharp deterioration in June
” After some promising signs of improving consumer demand between late April and May, things appear to have deteriorated significantly in June. », stresses Guido Lucarelli. And for the Citigroup analyst, the situation will not improve in the second half of the year, or even perhaps even during the first half of 2023. If buyers are more cautious in a context of loss of purchasing power, favoring basic necessities, they also tend to return purchased products more, the process being generally free, Asos said in mid-June, which also weighs on margins.
” Consumers are forced to make choices “due to a spike in food and gasoline prices, this will continue to have an impact on Zalando and other players in the profession, estimates Clément Genelot, of Bryan Garnier, quoted by the Bloomberg agency, I expect many more such warnings among European non-food retailers in the coming months as consensus expectations are far too high “.