Hugo Boss said muted consumer sentiment was having an impact on its business in the current quarter as it today forecast 2025 sales broadly in line with last year's level.
The upmarket fashion company has sought to boost the popularity of its brand through selected marketing investments, while increasing profits by limiting costs, despite weakening consumer demand and a polarisation of consumer preferences towards either high-end luxury or cheaper fast-fashion offers.
It sees annual sales development between a 2% decline and a 2% increase, to a range of €4.2 billion to €4.4 billion, following 3% growth to €4.3 billion in 2024.
"Macroeconomic and geopolitical volatility remains high, weighing on consumer sentiment and impacting our business performance since the beginning of the year," CEO Daniel Grieder said in a statement.
Analysts had estimated annual sales of €4.26 billion for 2024 and €4.44 billion for 2025, a company-provided poll showed.
The company expects full-year earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) to rise between 5% and 22%, coming in between €380-440m, compared to a 12% decline to €361m last year.
At its midpoint, the guidance would imply EBIT of €410m compared to analysts' estimate of €414m.
The company also said sales growth was "particularly robust" in the last three months of 2024, boosted by a successful Christmas season.
Group sales were €1.25 billion in the fourth quarter, beating analysts' expectations of €1.20 billion, with currency-adjusted sales in the Americas region rising 8% helped by a high single-digit percent uptick in the key US market.
"Sales in China remained below the prior-year level, reflecting overall muted local consumer demand," Hugo Boss added.
