BERLIN – German online fashion retailer Zalando said it expects to buck broader market trends and achieve double-digit growth in 2020. The business said it expects to grow revenues by between 10 and 20 per cent, with adjusted EBIT between €100m and €200m euros. It also plans to invest between €230m and €280m.
In the first quarter of 2020, Zalando grew its GMV by 13.9 per cent to €2bn and its revenue by 10.6 per cent to €1.5bn.
The positive outlook stands in stark contrast to the broader fashion retail industry, with most mainstream players facing a double-digit fall in growth – while some might not even make it to the end of the year.
Zalando said growth will be driven by the accelerated consumer shift from offline to online, and its ability to “invest independent of demand fluctuations and a challenging environment, as well as its accelerated platform transition.”
The company is also confident its Partner Program with brands will provide significant opportunities in the Covid-19 trading environment.
Said a company statement: “In times where offline sales are affected over-proportionally by governmental restrictions across Europe, brands are transferring more of their business online to reach their customers. In the past three weeks, 50 new partners joined the Partner Program, among them Vaude, American Eagle Outfitters, and Next Group brand Lipsy London.”
Rubin Ritter, co-CEO of Zalando, said: “We are confident that we will grow double-digit and at a clear profit in 2020. This will allow our partners to grow and gain market share in a challenging economic environment by building their business on Zalando. Many of them have significantly increased their activities on our platform in the past weeks, and we will continue to make it easier for them to reach customers across Europe.”