Daniel Ervér, the new CEO of Swedish fast-fashion giant H&M, revealed in an FT interview plans to beat low-price rivals by reacting quicker to trends and being faster to trade — in part by moving its manufacturing units in Asia closer to main markets.
Ervér assumed the position at the retail heavyweight’s helm after Helena Helmersson, who had been H&M’s chief executive for the past 4 years, unexpectedly announced last week that she was stepping down — sending shares in the company tumbling by 9% on the Stockholm stock exchange.
Over the past decade, the family-run group lost its title as the world’s largest fashion retailer to Spain’s Inditex, owner of Zara, while trying to keep pace with booming Chinese retailers like Shein, which captured more than double the market cap of H&M last year.
