Inditex, the owner of the Zara and Bershka brands, has booked a EUR409m (US$465m) loss against a EUR734m profit for the same period last year, blaming the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
EBITDA was EUR484m compared to EUR1.7bn year-on-year and net sales fell to EUR3.3bn versus EUR5.9bn last year.
Online sales were 50% up between 1 February and 30 April, surging 95% in April alone.
During the first quarter, most markets in which Inditex’s brands are present had imposed restrictions on the operation of stores. The group said since the beginning of May most markets on lockdown gradually began to open albeit with social distancing measures in place. While sales trends began to improve, they are not yet at normal levels.
Going forward, Inditex plans to invest EUR1bn in growing its online business and a further EUR1.7bn in upgrading its integrated store platform.
The RFID system it is implementing that enables garment tracking and integrated inventory management will be rolled out across all brands by the end of 2020 and it will press forward with plans to absorb smaller stores and open larger ones that are integrated with its online business.
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