Supply Chain · Profile from Supply Chain Research Companion
H&M
The Stockholm-based fashion group (H & M Hennes & Mauritz AB), founded by Erling Persson as Hennes in Västerås, Sweden in 1947 and still controlled by the Persson family, that became one of the world's largest fashion retailers (with Inditex and Fast Retailing) by building the opposite model to Inditex's: volume sourcing — large orders placed months ahead with independent suppliers mostly in Asia (China and Bangladesh the largest hubs, reported) — for low unit cost, sold through ~4,000 stores and online. Its supply-chain story turns on capital matched to the fashion cycle: the volume model is cheap per garment and expensive when demand misses, as in 2018, when H&M's stock of mostly unsold goods reached ~SEK 35bn (~$4.3bn, Q1 2018, reported) and markdowns crushed profit. Its other tests were the licence to operate in far sourcing (it was the first brand to sign the Bangladesh Accord after Rana Plaza, 2013, reported), China's 2021 boycott over its Xinjiang cotton statement, the 2022 Russia exit, a CEO change in 2024, and US tariffs in 2025–26 that hit a retailer whose largest market after Germany is the US (~15% of sales, analyst estimate, reported). Fiscal 2025 (to 30 Nov 2025): net sales SEK 228.3bn, operating margin 8.1%, gross margin 53.4% (company).
At a glance
- Founded
- Hennes, a women's clothing store in Västerås, Sweden, 1947 (Erling Persson); bought Mauritz Widforss (hunting and menswear) in 1968, becoming Hennes & Mauritz (company history)
- Headquarters
- Stockholm, Sweden
- Ownership / structure
- Listed on Nasdaq Stockholm (since 1974); the Persson family (Stefan Persson and family, mainly via Ramsbury Invest) holds a majority of votes and around two-thirds or more of capital in recent years (reported, verify %)
- Leadership (2026)
- Daniel Ervér, CEO from 31 Jan 2024 (succeeding Helena Helmersson, CEO Jan 2020–Jan 2024); Karl-Johan Persson, chair (CEO 2009–20) (company, reported)
- Brands
- H&M (incl. H&M Home, H&M Move), COS, Weekday, Monki (merged into Weekday from 2024–25, reported, verify), & Other Stories, ARKET, Afound; stakes in Sellpy (resale) and others
- Scale
- Fiscal 2025 (1 Dec 2024–30 Nov 2025): net sales SEK 228,285m (SEK 234,478m; +2% in local currencies), operating profit SEK 18,395m (17,306m), operating margin 8.1% (7.4%), gross margin 53.4% (company full-year report, Jan 2026). Q3 2026 (Jun–Aug 2026): operating profit SEK ~6.04bn (~4.91bn), operating margin 10.6% (8.6%), gross margin 54.0% (52.9%) incl. ~1.6 pp of one-off tariff-related effects; sales +1% in local currencies with ~2% fewer stores (company, 24–25 Sep 2026, reported)
- Sourcing
- Independent suppliers (~600–800 commercial suppliers and ~1,000+ manufacturing factories in recent supplier lists, reported, verify), mostly in Asia (China, Bangladesh, India, Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Pakistan, Myanmar exit 2022–23, reported) plus Turkey and Europe; production offices in sourcing countries
- Network
- Regional distribution centres (many operated by 3PLs, increasingly automated, reported), ocean freight from Asia to Europe and the US, store replenishment and online fulfilment from shared stock; RFID rolled out from 2018–19 in H&M stores (reported, verify)
- Signature moves (incl. failures)
- Founding (1947); US entry (2000); Rana Plaza and the Accord (2013); the 2018 unsold-inventory problem; Xinjiang cotton boycott in China (2021); Russia exit (2022); CEO change and margin recovery (2024–26); US tariffs and sourcing shift (2025–26)
8 strategic moves analysed
Each one gets a full strategy file in the companion: context, the decision, the financing, what happened, and the lesson.
1947
Hennes Vasteras Founding
Founding — a low-price, high-volume fashion store
2000
US Entry Fifth Avenue
Network build — entry into the US with a flagship store and a regional distribution set-up
2013
Rana Plaza and the Accord
Safety incident (industry-wide) and response — first brand to sign the legally binding Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh (reported)
2018
Unsold Inventory Glut
Disruption and response (failure) — inventory build-up, markdowns and a logistics-system transition
2021
Xinjiang Cotton Boycott in China
Regulatory / geopolitical (failure) — a supplier-ethics statement that triggered a consumer and platform boycott in China
2022
Russia Exit
Divestment (loss) — pause and wind-down of the Russian business
2024
CEO Change and Margin Recovery
Strategy pivot; restructuring — new CEO focused on margins, purchasing cost and the brand
2025
US Tariffs and Sourcing Shift
Regulatory, customs or legal exposure; sourcing shift — moving US-bound production to less-affected origins