Hunkemöller needs push-up after disappointing year

Dutch lingerie brand Hunkemöller fails to excite with its recently published full-year results: its sales fell and net losses doubled. The lingerie will close almost fifty loss-making shops over the next year.

Double pressure

Last financial year (until the end of January 2024) was a disappointing one for Hunkemöller, whose sales fell by 8 % to 542.3 million euros, while its gross operating profit (EBITDA) dropped by a third to 42.8 million euros and net losses more than doubled to 141.8 million euros due to a 109 million euros write-off of goodwill from its new shareholders.

Like a lot of other retailers, Hunkemöller said it was struggling with “the double pressure of inflation and lower disposable income among consumers”. 45 shops closed last year, although the chain also opened eleven new stores. E-commerce, both in its own webshop and via platforms, accounts for only a quarter of sales.

The conditions remain challenging, the underwear brand says: almost fifty shops will close this year as well, while the company borrowed an additional fifty million euros this month. The new CEO, Brian Grevy, has a tough task ahead: Hunkemöller has a mountain of debt eight times its EBITA, but nevertheless wants to revamp its shops and offerings and open an automated distribution centre soon.