German beauty retailer Douglas is targeting net sales of €5bn by 2026, as part of a new four-year strategy it unveiled today.
Under the new plan, the retailer aims to increase its sales from €3.65bn today to €5bn by developing its European store footprint, e-commerce, its range of brands and its retail media business. Douglas also stated that it aims to increase EBITDA, without indicating any specific goals.
The company plans to invest in its store network, which will include modernizing stores, expanding in existing markets, as well as in new markets, such as Belgium and Slovenia.
At the same time, the company plans to increase profits and cash-flow with stricter cost management. The company has conducted a review to highlight possible cost cuts at its business.
Douglas says its new strategy focuses on four pillars: Investment in brand visibility, which will include developing its ESG program; building its product offer and strengthening categories such as skincare, make-up and hair; improving its omnichannel business and the customer experience across stores and e-commerce, which will involve investment in new technology and a more focused concept for store formats, and lastly, increasing profitability by investing in its supply chain and technology to improve automation. It adds that structures and processes will be simplified across Europe to enable faster decision-making and accountability.
The new strategy comes five months after Douglas appointed Sander van der Laan as its new CEO. He was formerly CEO of Dutch non-food retailer Action and replaced Tina Müller, who was CEO of Douglas for five years.
Van der Laan commented: “We have seen a tremendous comeback of our stores after the pandemic and the era of lockdowns, while e-Commerce remains strong. Our leading omni-channel business model has proven very resilient and this is exactly what we will focus on. We strongly believe in the combination of a unique stationary offer with the passionate service from our around 16,000 Beauty Advisors and a convenient online shopping experience. ”