Following today’s release of Zalando’s figures for the three months ending 30 June 2026; Sharon Iles, senior apparel analyst at GlobalData, a leading intelligence and productivity platform, offers her view: “Zalando continued to outpace the wider European apparel market in Q2 FY2026, with revenue up 20.8% to €3.4bn, a slight step down from the 23.8% growth seen in the prior quarter. This was primarily driven by the consolidation of ABOUT YOU’s acquisition, completed in July 2025, with Zalando also performing solidly on a standalone basis, supported by continued growth in the partner business and B2B logistics arm. Adjusted EBIT rose 10.4% to €204.8m, but the margin edged down to 6.0% from 6.5% last year, as robust B2B profitability was partially outweighed by ABOUT YOU’s lower-margin commerce mix. Zalando has kept its full-year revenue guidance unchanged at €13.8bn–€14.4bn, or 12%–17% growth but now expects to come in toward the lower half of that range. Meanwhile, it has tightened its adjusted EBIT outlook to €680m–€720m from €660m–€740m previously, signaling increased confidence in the quality of earnings even as sales growth starts to cool. Zalando’s share price fell c.15% in early trading, as investors reacted poorly to the margin drop despite underlying numbers landing broadly in line with expectations.
“In its largest segment, B2C, revenue grew 20.3% to €3.1bn, while active customers rose 18.3% to 62.5m, aided by ABOUT YOU’s inclusion and continued expansion of Zalando’s own customer base. This was helped by the group’s multi-app strategy across Zalando, ABOUT YOU and Lounge by Zalando, which is broadening its addressable market and lifting average basket value. Sports and beauty categories outperformed, benefiting from upgraded customer journeys and continued demand for self-care and premium products, while the sneaker category remained soft as shoppers traded down amid broader economic uncertainty. Alongside this, Zalando launched a dedicated Home & Living category, with more than 50 brand partners, and entered a pre-owned luxury partnership with Vestiaire Collective covering 14 European markets. The retailer also continued to expand its AI-powered Zalando Assistant throughout the half, rolling out new capabilities on a weekly basis, including web search for real-time queries, customer care functions, and image-based visual discovery. These initiatives should support deeper customer engagement and help offset the temporary margin pressure from ABOUT YOU’s integration.
“Zalando’s B2B segment continued its acceleration, with revenue up 27.6% to €334.7m, driven by strong onboarding momentum at ZEOS Fulfilment and the inclusion of ABOUT YOU’s SCAYLE platform. The segment’s adjusted EBIT margin more than doubled to 12.2% from 4.3% a year earlier, reflecting increased scale and efficiency gains as the business matures. A key development was the launch of Marks & Spencer on ZEOS Fulfilment, alongside a fulfilment extension for NEXT through ABOUT YOU, while Hugo Boss was secured as a new ZEOS client. Zalando also secured the Wortmann Group, one of Europe’s largest shoe retailers, as a client for SCAYLE. It also launched SCAYLE Studios, an AI-powered marketing content, platform which cuts production time by more than 95% and costs by around 90% versus traditional photo shoots, illustrating how Zalando’s AI investment is translating into scalable B2B revenue. Zalando continues to expect B2B profitability growth to significantly outpace that of B2C for the remainder of the year.”
