No Spring In H&Ms Profits After Cold Snap

Stockholm: Hennes and Mauritz (H&M) saw its profits plummet once again after unusually cold weather in key European markets brought sales of spring garments down, the Swedish retail giant said Tuesday as it released first quarter results.

Net profits for the three months from January were down 44 per cent to 1.37 billion Swedish crowns ($168 million or Dh612.8 million) from 2.46 billion this time last year.

In Germany, H&M’s main market, sales were down 6 per cent. In France, the high-street fashion giant’s fourth market, they plunged 10 per cent.

“The start of the year has been tough,” CEO Karl-Johan Persson said in a statement.

“The high level of clearance sales combined with unusually cold winter weather had a negative impact on the sales of the spring garments,” he added.

The company, one of the hardest hit by what analysts have termed the “retail apocalypse” sparked by the online shopping revolution, is doing its utmost to ride out the storm.

“2018 is a transitional year for the H&M group, as we accelerate our transformation so that we can take advantage of the opportunities generated by rapid digitalisation,” Persson said.

As it teams up with social media giants for a better digital presence, the Swedish group says it expects its online sales to grow more than 25 per cent in 2018.

“We take a long-term view that together with our knowledge and experience enable us to navigate through times such as this,” Persson added.