Globus saw revenue shrink 5.6% in 2019, despite e-commerce

The Globus department stores had a difficult year in 2019, marked by the closure of several outlets as part of a major restructuring. Revenues contracted 5.6% to 762.7 million francs, despite the boom in online commerce.

In a press release issued on Thursday, the Migros group subsidiary – which has been looking for a buyer since last June – explains this decline mainly by the store closings that followed the integration of the Schild and Globus Hommes brands within Globus, and reports that on a like-for-like basis, revenues increased slightly (+ 0.9%).

Online activities, however, were flourishing. Their turnover soared (+ 111%), a result “particularly satisfactory given the ultra-competitive nature of the e-commerce market and the increasing pressure exerted by national and international competition”.

“Not only has our online turnover more than doubled, but we have also been able to keep stationary sales at the same level on a like-for-like basis,” said Globus general manager (CEO). , Thomas Herbert, quoted in a press release.

Last December, a spokesperson for Migros said that “the Globus group sales process is going as planned and takes a while”, but that it should be completed in the first half of 2020.