Thanks to a strong fourth quarter, the fashion group Hugo Boss exceeded its annual targets. According to preliminary calculations, the operating profit (EBIT) rose to 228 million euros in 2021, as the company announced in Metzingen on Tuesday. In the best case, the management had recently promised 200 million euros. In the previous year, Hugo Boss had posted a loss of 236 million euros due to the shop closings in the corona pandemic.
Meanwhile, sales rose by 43 percent year-on-year to around 2.8 billion euros, which was also slightly better than expected. Hugo Boss explained the development as consumer sentiment brightened worldwide from the second quarter. The company also benefited from its restructuring program, which the management around the new boss Daniel Grieder launched in the summer in order to drive growth forward again.
The fourth quarter was also better than analysts had expected, with revenue growth of 51 percent to EUR 906 million and an increase in operating profit from EUR 13 million to EUR 100 million. Hugo Boss intends to present final figures on March 10th. (dpa)