H&M India to enter online space in 2018, says Country Manager Einola

The logo of Swedish fashion label H&M is seen outside a store in Vienna, Austria, October 1, 2016. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger - D1AEUFJYMZAA

Swedish fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz (H&M) will foray into the online space in India during 2018.

H&M India country manager Janne Einola told Moneycontrol, “We are getting into the online space from this year.” However, he did not reveal the exact timeline for its online foray.

Einola said that globally, the online space accounts for 12 percent sales volume for H&M.

He was speaking from the sidelines of the two-day Retail Leadership Summit that started in Mumbai yesterday.

Einola said deliveries for the orders placed will be undertaken by a third-party logistics partner.

"As of now we will not be integrating our physical stores with online operations, but we will evaluate the business as it goes along," he said.

H&M is not keen to associate with any of the online marketplaces, and will run online sales solely on its own digital property, according to Einola.

The H&M India chief sounded optimistic about prospects for online sales in the country but refrained from quoting a number, merely saying India was a “market with good potential".

Speaking about expansion of physical stores, Einola said currently H&M has 29 stores including 2 new stores in Mumbai. The retail chain has its presence in Tier 1 cities but will soon venture into Tier 2 cities as well.

“Currently, we have 29 stores, including the two new ones in Mumbai, and we will add one more in Mysore. We have been adding one store a month since we began operations a little over two years ago," Einola said.

He also said that 75 percent of its stores are present in large metros, but going forward it plans to focus on smaller cities as well.

For financial year 2017, in the eight-month period till November, H&M India has clocked sales of over Rs 955 crore, double the FY2016 figure of Rs 490 crore.

While India is among one H&M’s fastest growing markets, it still does not feature among its list of top 10 markets, which is led by Germany, US and Britain.