HUGO BOSS increases pace of growth and achieves its annual targets

Preliminary Results 2017

Metzingen, January 16, 2018



HUGO BOSS increases pace of growth and achieves its annual targets

Q4 2017

·      Currency-adjusted Group sales up 5% in the fourth quarter

·      Retail comp store sales up 7% on prior year

·      Online sales up by 42%



Fiscal year 2017

·      Currency-adjusted sales up 3%

·      EBITDA before special items on prior year level on a preliminary basis

·      Final results to be published on March 8, 2018

“We achieved our goals for 2017”, comments Mark Langer, Chief Executive Officer of HUGO BOSS AG. “The final quarter was particularly pleasing. The strong development in own retail shows that we are on the right path with the changes we are making to our collections and stores. With the current Spring/Summer collection which has just been launched in the stores, the realignment of BOSS and HUGO is now fully visible for the first time. We strive to carry the momentum gained in the last months into 2018. Our online business is now on track, too, and will make a sustainable contribution toward the growth of the company.”

Sales dynamic of HUGO BOSS showed further improvement in the fourth quarter. Based on preliminary figures, Group sales grew by 5% in local currencies to EUR 735 million (Q4 2016: EUR 725 million). The growth was mostly due to strong sales development in the Group’s own retail business, which grew by 7% on a comp store basis. The double-digit growth seen in the U.S. was encouraging. 

Great Britain and China also continued the upward trend. The Group’s own online business grew significantly with a double-digit percentage growth rate, while sales in the wholesale channel declined as expected.

On a preliminary, non-audited basis, HUGO BOSS recorded sales of EUR 2,733 million in the full year. In the reporting currency, this corresponds to an increase of 1% on the prior year. Adjusted for currency effects, this was an increase of 3%. Subject to the completion of year-end closing procedures, the Group expects that EBITDA before special items will be largely the same in 2017 as in the previous year (2016: EUR 493 million) and therefore in line with the forecast. The increase in sales was balanced by investments in repositioning the BOSS and HUGO brands, the digital transformation of the business model and negative currency effects.

HUGO BOSS expects a one-off, non-cash tax expense of around EUR 12 million in the fiscal year 2017 in connection with the tax reform adopted in the United States. This results from the revaluation of deferred tax assets.