Zalando is venturing into the inner city with the purchase of the sports chain Kickz. With the takeover of the multichannel retailer for basketball, a new project is on the agenda as part of Zalando’s platform strategy as the company explained.
The basketball specialist chain operates 15 stores in Germany and the rest of Europe and the USA and also sells online. Financial details were not disclosed. The acquisition is to be completed in the first half of the year.
The takeover is part of the company’s strategy to generate growth: this year, a total of more than 2,000 new jobs will be created and 200 million euros will be invested. The MDax Group is investing steadily in IT and logistics.
Zalando also reiterated its forecast to increase sales by 20 to 25 percent this year. The profit margin should be between five and six percent - 2016 were 5.9 percent.
Adjusted earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) reached EUR 96 million in the fourth quarter of 2016, which corresponds to a margin of 8.8 percent. Sales rose by almost 26 percent to just under 1.1 billion euros.
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