The aesthetic and financial recipe that has returned Desigual to profitability

BarcelonaDesigual confirms its return to profitability. The Catalan fashion brand closed 2024 with a profit of €313,331, after suffering losses of €61.4 million in the previous year, as reported by Modaes on Thursday and confirmed by the Catalan Association of Companies (ARA) through accounts filed with the Mercantile Registry. This improvement is mainly due to restructuring, cost adjustments, and provisions that had significantly impacted its recent results. In 2022, profits were €3 million.

The brand, founded by Thomas Meyer, has been immersed in recent years in a process of transformation to reposition itself and attract a younger audience. This shift has involved significantly increased spending in areas such as communication—the company has invested in strong campaigns featuring well-known figures like actress Ester Expósito—and the store network, which has been significantly reduced. However, as the group announced in June, Desigual achieved a turnover of €332 million in 2024, a 5.8% decrease compared to the €352 million of the previous year. In addition to the net result, the company managed to improve its operating profit (EBITDA), which went from a negative €58.7 million in 2023 to a negative €424,191 in 2024. Desigual also adjusted other items such as supplies and personnel expenses. "This year will be the third consecutive year of organic growth," the firm emphasized a few months ago. The group presents its accounts through Abasic, which consolidates the balance sheets of its subsidiaries in countries such as Spain, the United Kingdom, France, Portugal, the Netherlands, Belgium, Japan, Singapore, Canada, and Poland.

Transformation to the group

Desigual hit rock bottom ten years ago when sales began to decline and the French fund Eurazeo eventually sold its stake. Meyer then bought back that 10% to regain control of the brand. The arrival of the current CEO, Alberto Ojinaga, in 2018 ushered in a period of financial discipline, and the fashion company now seems poised to return to profitability. As for the shift in aesthetics—the bold prints and fabric combinations have been toned down to appeal to a wider audience—the industry credits the current global artistic director, Jan Rivera.