Or to paraphrase this summer's chart-topper-and star H&M collaborator-Charli XCX, the brand isn't nearly brat enough.
For decades, H&M enjoyed a sweet spot in which it offered shoppers affordable but fashionable clothes, with collections from designers including Karl Lagerfeld and Stella McCartney alongside the brand's own $20 hoodies and $40 dresses.
Now it is being undercut by lower-cost, faster-moving online brands such as Shein, while its collections haven't always connected with younger consumers in recent years, analysts say.
In a growing and increasingly competitive fashion industry, H&M's sales have stagnated, while rivals like Shein and the more upmarket Zara have thrived. H&M's 2023 revenues of around $21 billion were barely higher than its 2017 total, whereas Zara owner Inditex's sales rose 42% over the same period. In the first nine months of this year, H&M's sales fell 1%, compared with a 7% increase for Inditex.
To regain its edge, H&M appointed Daniel Ervér as its new chief executive in January. Under the 43-year-old former intern, the Swedish company has lowered prices, modernized stores and spent more on marketing.
More specifically, H&M is making a play to regain cachet with young shoppers by tying the brand to Charli XCX and pop music more broadly, a campaign that included a series of live events in cities around the world this fall.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة December 23, 2024 من The Wall Street Journal.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
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هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة December 23, 2024 من The Wall Street Journal.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول