The pandemic hit Hugo Boss really hard. During the lockdown in the Corona crisis, not only were the shops closed in many countries, which hit the fashion company from Metzingen in Swabia particularly hard, because online sales were not particularly pronounced at the beginning. At the same time, Hugo Boss fashion was not in demand either. Suits, ties, expensive shirts, cocktail dresses – all of this could hardly be sold. People sat at home in jogging pants and t-shirts in front of their computers.
But now Hugo Boss has recovered. This Tuesday, the group announced the first figures for 2021 – and even exceeded its already raised forecasts. Currency-adjusted sales increased by 43 percent to almost 2.8 billion euros. The operating result increased significantly to 228 million euros, in 2020 there was a minus of 236 million euros. “We have greatly accelerated our sales and earnings development over the course of the year,” explained the new CEO Daniel Grieder. In the end, the revenues in 2021 are only one percent below the level of the pre-crisis year 2019. Apparently, the Christmas business went particularly well. Revenue increased 5o percent to EUR 906 million in Q4, higher than 2019.
Daniel Grieder was CEO of Tommy Hilfiger for a long time and has been with Hugo Boss since mid-2021.
(Photo: Pedro Fiuza/dpa)
The growth is due in particular to sales of leisure fashion, it said, i.e. so-called casualwear, this is where the Hugo brand is positioned. But also the formalwear sales (brand: mainly Boss), i.e. the sale of formal clothing such as suits or dresses, recovered. One benefited from the fact that social events could often take place in the run-up to Christmas. Things went particularly well in Europe, North America and again in China, where Boss suits are particularly popular.
Daniel Grieder has been CEO of Hugo Boss since June 2021. The Swiss was previously the head of Tommy Hilfiger, where he had positioned the brand more broadly and more strongly in the leisure sector. He also wants to change a few things at Boss, for example the brand identity. The largest Boss and Hugo marketing campaign in the company’s history is to be launched soon. Grieder says he wants to increase the “relevance of the brands”.
Hugo Boss is one of the very few world-renowned fashion brands from Germany. The share had fallen massively during the Corona crisis, from around 80 euros before the pandemic to almost 20 euros at times. In the meantime, the paper has recovered significantly, even after the appointment of the new company boss. The stock first rose significantly on Tuesday, then fell again and was then roughly unchanged. The final figures and a more detailed outlook for 2022 should come in March.