-comment on profit
2014 was a very good year for H&M. Over the full year sales increased by 14 percent in local currencies and by 18 percent in Swedish kronor, to SEK 176.6 billion including VAT. Profit for the year after tax, before the contribution to HIP, increased by 18 percent to over SEK 20 billion. Well-received collections for all the group’s brands and continued strong expansion both in stores and online helped increase market shares and further strengthened H&M’s position in the market.
16,000 new jobs were created within the H&M group in 2014 and at the end of the financial year the group employed just over 132,000 people in total. These employees and the H&M spirit – the group’s values – are the key to its success, and the good results for the year meant that H&M allocated SEK 303 m as a contribution to the H&M Incentive Program (HIP). HIP is for all employees in the H&M group and aims to acknowledge the employees’ daily and long-term commitment.
Many major long-term investments have been made in IT, online, new brands and in broadening the product range, with a view to strengthening the position of the H&M group further and securing future expansion. In addition, H&M’s extensive sustainability work is another example of how the group adds value for its customers; customers should always know that when they shop at H&M, the products have been produced with the greatest possible consideration for people and the environment.
As these long-term investments continue, it is clear at the same time that the investments in areas such as online are starting to bear fruit. In 2014 H&M’s online store opened in four new large markets: France, Italy, Spain and China. Combined with further improvements in the online offering, this contributed to the good sales development during the year. H&M’s online store will therefore be rolled out to nine new markets in 2015: Belgium, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia and Switzerland.
Early in 2014 H&M Sport was successfully launched, and in the autumn the expanded shoe range was gradually launched in selected H&M stores and online. In a further step towards broadening H&M’s product range, autumn 2015 will see the start of the launch of H&M Beauty. H&M Beauty is a new, broad concept for make-up, body care and hair care with high quality value-for-money products in a specially produced design. H&M Beauty, which will replace H&M’s current own-brand cosmetics, will be launched already in 2015 in about 900 H&M stores in around 40 markets as well as in H&M’s online markets.