H&M's sales lead widened in FY25; Uniqlo emerged as breakout story

H&M remained India's top global fashion retailer in FY25, while Uniqlo clocked the fastest growth, even as rivals like Zara and M&S lagged amid market slowdown

When it comes to global fashion retailers in India, H&M continued to lead the pack in 2024-25 (FY25), as the retailer’s revenue outpaced that of its peers by a wide margin. However, Japanese apparel retailer Uniqlo recorded the strongest top-line growth in the country.

 

According to financial data accessed by business intelligence platform Tofler, the Indian arm of the Swedish company posted revenue growth of 9.6 per cent to ₹3,595.2 crore in FY25 — far ahead of rivals such as Zara, Marks & Spencer, and Uniqlo.

 

Tofler data shows that Zara, which operates in India through a joint venture with Tata-owned Trent, recorded a modest 0.4 per cent increase in revenue to ₹2,782 crore in FY25 from ₹2,770.9 crore in the previous year.

 

Meanwhile, the Indian arm of British retailer Marks & Spencer saw net sales fall 11.9 per cent to ₹1,536.6 crore in FY25 from ₹1,742.2 crore a year earlier.

 

Japan-headquartered Uniqlo posted the steepest rise among competitors, with net sales increasing 44.2 per cent to ₹1,175.5 crore in FY25 from ₹814.8 crore in the year-ago period.

 

Despite this growth, all global apparel players still trail H&M by a wide margin. “H&M was among the first players to enter the Indian market and has had a long runway for growth. The price points are much lower than those of global rivals, making it more attractive for young customers, which is the biggest target market for such brands,” a merchandise executive at a global apparel brand told Business Standard.

 

In its decade-long stint in India, H&M has also expanded its offerings beyond apparel and accessories to beauty, which is expected to further drive growth. In contrast, the rivals mentioned above have not entered newer categories.

 

“In 2015, when we opened our first store at Select Citywalk in New Delhi, our goal was to make fashion accessible and relevant to Indian consumers. Since then, we have also introduced locally relevant festival collections that celebrate India’s vibrant culture,” Helena Kuylenstierna, director of H&M India, told Business Standard earlier.

 

The brand’s growth strategy combines expansion into new cities with enhancement of existing locations, while also increasing its omnichannel presence. In addition to being available on e-commerce platform Myntra and running its own online operations, H&M expanded its online reach by partnering rival platform Nykaa and Nykaa Fashion in November last year.

 

“India is a fast-growing market for H&M, and this growth allows us to keep expanding our offerings in ways that feel truly relevant to our customers. We will always be a global fashion brand… However, we do see continuous potential for our India-for-India strategy, where we tweak our global offering to the liking of Indian consumers,” Kuylenstierna added.

 

An overall slowdown in the apparel market and increased competition from home-grown brands like Trent’s Zudio and Westside have also dented growth for global retailers.