LONDON (dpa-AFX) - HUGO BOSS AG (HUGSF.PK) presented its strategy at an Investor Day in London today. It will only operate with two brands in future - BOSS and HUGO. BOSS will offer upper premium businesswear as well as sophisticated casualwear. BOSS Orange and BOSS Green will no longer be continued as independent brands, but instead both lines will be integrated into the BOSS core brand in order to offer the BOSS customer a consistent brand experience across all wearing occasions.
The company expects to significantly strengthen its market presence in the growth segment of casualwear. HUGO will in future appeal to a broader base of younger customers with fashionable collections offered at attractive prices. HUGO's entry-level price range will be around 30 percent lower than that of the BOSS core brand. The realignment of the brand portfolio is set to be completed with the delivery of the Spring 2018 collection.
HUGO BOSS noted that it will retain its three-part distribution structure - retail, wholesale and online - but these channels will be linked together much more closely.
HUGO BOSS said it has already introduced an array of measures in response to the difficult market environment over the course of the year. These include cost savings of around 65 million euros in the current year, closing loss-making stores and adapting the sales structure in the U.S. market, as well as significant price reductions in China.
The company has recently affirmed its forecast for 2016 when publishing its third quarter results. The outlook suggests that sales will grow steadily or decline by up to 3 percent on a currency-adjusted basis. The company still expects the operating result -EBITDA before special items- to decline by between 17 and 23 percent.
2017 is currently expected to be a year of stabilization, during which the Group will continue to further consolidate the wholesale distribution in the U.S. market in particular. At the same time, HUGO BOSS will drive forward the implementation of the strategy announced today. The majority of strategic changes will become effective in 2018. HUGO BOSS therefore expects to return to growth in 2018.
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX