H&M cash in on hair styling and vegan cosmetics with fewer clothes

A streamlined Hennes & Maurtiz store, decluttered in  Karlaplan, affluent district of Stockholm, started crucial experiment which could turn the fortunes of the Swedish purveyor of cheap chic.

H&M struggled for profitability in the wake of tough competition from Zara, owned by Spain’s Inditex,  whose fashion were sharper.

Menswear has been ditched so the selection focuses on women, with small kids’ section and hybrid nail bar that also does hair styling at weekends, with softer lights.

Ann Bergare, head of business development at H&M Lab – which works on new concepts – said the store had 30-40 per cent fewer items in it than before but after refit turnover has miraculously risen.

Karl-Johan Persson, (44) , CEO and grandson of chairman Stefan Persson says the company has been under heavy pressure  for years amid rumblings from shareholders that only his family connections have saved him said “ Complacency crept in and that hurt us in combination with the whole change in the market, a new competitive landscape”.

A new store opened this week in Berlin offering second-hand clothes, yoga classes and vegan cosmetics. Online sales are increasingly important and it has been trying hard to make relatively expensive things – such as cheap delivery and in-store returns – work even for its cheapest products.