Zalando meets 2025 expectations and forecasts further growth

Berlin-based online fashion retailer Zalando increased sales and operating profit during the 2025 financial year. Management now anticipates further growth for the current year and has announced a comprehensive share buyback programme.

“Our 2025 results demonstrate our strength in execution: we promised profitable growth and delivered at the upper end of our forecast,” explained chief financial officer Anna Dimitrova in a statement released on Thursday. “We will maintain this discipline in 2026. We are in a position to finance our growth while returning capital to our shareholders. This underscores our confidence in Zalando's future profitability and our disciplined approach to capital allocation.”

Annual sales increase by 16.8 percent Last year, Zalando generated sales of approximately 12.3 billion euros (14.20 billion dollars), representing a 16.8 percent increase compared to 2024. Gross merchandise volume (GMV) rose by 14.7 percent to 17.6 billion euros.

Strong growth was largely attributable to the acquisition of competitor About You in summer 2025. The company has since made great progress in realising synergies from the integration. Zalando now aims to achieve synergies of 100 million euros per year by 2028, one year earlier than originally planned.

Special effects impact profit

Thanks to sales growth and a stable margin, adjusted earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) reached 590.7 million euros, a 15.6 percent increase compared to the previous year. According to the company, adjustments resulted from share-based compensation, acquisition-related expenses including amortisation of acquired intangible assets, restructuring costs and other non-operating effects. Reported EBIT decreased by 1.2 percent to 387.2 million euros due to these factors. Net profit attributable to shareholders fell from 251.1 million euros in the previous year to 215.1 million euros.

Co-CEO Robert Gentz was pleased with the results. “We have accelerated the implementation of our strategy, driven key innovations in the B2C and B2B sectors, and delivered a strong result in 2025,” Gentz stated. “Our unique data and infrastructure platform, built over 17 years, gives us a massive advantage today. We possess the richest fashion-specific data in Europe, derived from billions of customer interactions and unparalleled brand relationships. We also have the continent's leading logistics network.” Through targeted AI innovations, Gentz highlighted that Zalando can provide customers and partners with experiences and offers that were previously unimaginable while increasing operational efficiency.

Further growth and share buyback programme

For the current financial year, management expects further growth. Sales and GMV are projected to increase by 12 to 17 percent compared to 2025. Adjusted EBIT is expected to be between 660 and 740 million euros. This outlook reflects operational progress and the accelerated realisation of synergies from the About You transaction.

The group also announced plans to invest between 240 and 300 million euros in its technology platform and infrastructure. Additionally, it revealed an intention to buy back shares with a total value of up to 300 million euros. The planned buybacks will be financed from the company's strong cash position.

This article was translated to English using an AI tool.

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