Hugo Boss reveals strategic growth plan targeting faster sales increase

German fashion label Hugo Boss is set to unveil its upcoming strategic growth scheme, which will run to the 2020 during the Investor Day event taking place in Paris today.

The fashion brand predicts its sales growth to speed up and its margins to improve over the next few years as it works to “significantly upgrade” its core brand, with the aim of earning a 20 percent share of sales in the luxury segment by repositioning the brand and solely offering it in a mono-brand environment.

Hugo Boss aims to achieve an average sales growth “in the high-single digits, despite the increasingly challenging macro-economic and industry-specific environment,” over the coming years. It's plan also predicts an increase in the operating margin to 25 percent.

To reach these aims, Hugo Boss plans on introduce new measures to sell more womenswear, which will be driven additional “product initiatives for apparel, shoes and accessories,” to ensure its womenswear Boss division accounts for at least 15 percent of its sales by 2020.

“Considerable sales and profit increases underline the success of [Hugo Boss's] strategy"

“Considerable sales and profit increases underline the success of our strategy in the last years,” said Claus-Dietrich Lahrs, CEO of Hugo Boss in a statement. “The initiatives introduced today develop this strategy further and secure profitable growth. We will elevate our core brand in both menswear and womenswear. In doing so, we offer customers an attractive brand experience across all touch points.”

The German fashion label also aims to grow its own retail network by taking over certain franchise activities and shop-in-shops from wholesale partners. Hugo Boss reiterated its goal to sell more products through its own channels, rather than third parties and set a goal for its retail sales to account for more than three-quarters of its total by 2020.

Hugo Boss will also take control of all its own online activities and integrate them with its in-store activities in the future. “This will enhance customers' shopping experience and spur growth in the group's own online and offline retail activities,” commented the group.

In addition, the group also aims to develop its presence in markets where its fashion brand isn't well represented, which includes locations in Asia and Eastern Europe.

The forward looking statement did not make any references to the previous target set by the group, for sales to reach 3 billion euros by 2015, a target analysts predicted would be difficult for the group to achieve.