This week, HUGO BOSS gave an interesting update on the strategic plan  “CLAIM 5” presented  in august 2021 when all the management team from Tommy Hilfiger landed at HUGO BOSS, including Daniel GRIEDER, CEO, Oliver TIMM (COO) and Iri EPPLE (board member).

Daniel and his team have been reshaping brands, products, and distribution with impressive results.

1-Resegmenting each brand

Daniel GRIEDER has been rebuilding a specific identity for each brand: BOSS is more for older and formal high-end customers. HUGO is more casual and relaxed for young customers between 18 and 30 years. HUGO has been attracting 35% more young customers since 2021.

2-Brand building through social media

HUGO BOSS has identified several “social celebrities” as ambassadors for each brand and for each regional hub (US, Europe, Asia). Thanks to this approach, HUGO BOSS is very well followed on Instagram and TikTok enjoying 80 billion impressions on social networks in 2022.

3-Coordinating digital and physical stores revenues

When Daniel GRIEDER was running Tommy Hilfiger, he was one of the first luxury manager to understand that digital sales and brick and mortal sales are the 2  sides  of the same coin. He closed some physical stores and created  new digital stores. This strategy was  replicated at HUGO BOSS with even a metaverse shop. Thanks to this dynamic digital approach, revenues by square meters in HUGO BOSS stores strongly increased since 2021 and inventories were  dramatically reduced.

3-Impressive results

With this strategy directly inspired from Tommy Hilfiger, HUGO BOSS enjoyed the best sales growth rate since 2021 among casual luxury brands, growing 27%, beating the  MONCLER brand, often considered as the best in class in this casual luxury segment.

All brands, all sub products segments and all geographic areas are growing at similar high rates except China .Social media celebrities are not only representing the brands but also launching their own HB capsules collections. As Daniel GRIEDER explained during the investor day “we want our customers to become fans”.

China which was also an important part of HB business in 2019, should also benefit from the reopening and offer room for positive upside.

HUGO BOSS  is increasingly  confident. The CEO raised the company outlook for the 5^th time since taking over in 2021. The EUR 4 bn initial revenue target for 2025 sounded very  ambitious. It  will be reached this year and the new 2025 target has been revised up to EUR 5 bn  well above the current consensus. If Daniel Grieder is right, he would have nearly double HUGO BOSS revenues since his arrival in 2020/21.

We will soon find out who is the BOSS…