H&M announces solid online sales as e-commerce efforts gain traction

Friday, September 28, 2018 - 10:53 by Paul Tissington

Although it may have suffered a few setbacks in terms of bricks and mortar performance in recent months, H&M has confirmed this week that it is making much more of a splash in the world of shopping online thanks to fresh strategies.

In Q3 of 2018 it managed to boost e-commerce sales by 32 per cent, according to the Financial Times. So even with profits down by 29 per cent so far this year, it is still set to stay in the black and should continue to improve its web presence going forwards.

Various challenges have faced H&M, the biggest of which was arguably the fact that it had not been adequately enamoured with the idea of safe shopping online in the first place, allowing rivals to get ahead of the curve. When it became apparent that it needed to make up for its diminishing impact on the highs street, the firm scrambled to make amends in a turn-around that now seems to be working out.

Chief exec, Karl-Johan Persson, said that it was vital for H&M to transform and shift along with the ever-changing fashion sector, or else face an uphill struggle going forwards. He claimed that customers were happy with its revamped e-commerce offerings and were also pleased to see these mirrored by in-store alterations as well.

Another of the company’s conundrums related to stock levels, with a surplus of unsold items often weighing it down at the end of each year. Persson said that this was also under control, although he admitted that there was still a way to go before this issue was completely remedied.

In an age when big brands can tumble with relative ease, it is good to see a retailer like H&M reacting sooner rather than later to remain relevant.