Is life cool again? Desigual's pivot to avoid disappearance
The Catalan fashion brand is back in the black with fewer stores and targeting a younger audience.
"I never would have thought I'd end up carrying Desigual." By printing it on a basic white T-shirt, the Catalan fashion chain has turned this phrase, which might seem like a criticism, into the banner of its transformation. The company founded by Swiss entrepreneur Thomas Meyer in Barcelona has experienced a turbulent decade of economic decline since its peak in 2014, when it had revenues of almost €1 billion and a network of 526 stores worldwide. Ten years later, Desigual is a smaller brand—in 2024, it had revenues of €332 million, a third of its peak—and with practically half the number of stores (it now has 282), which has pivoted to try to adapt to the tastes of younger customers and return to profitability.
A symptom that something has changed at the brand are the comments with which, from time to time, social media users express, amazed, the same idea reflected in this white t-shirt. "Desigual clothing has changed or it has changed the way I see Desigual clothing", "Over the years I've started to like some Desigual clothes, I think this is growing up", "Super unpopular opinion: "I like Desigual clothes," say some of the consumers who have been re-engaged by the fashion company with the resurgence of the 2000s aesthetic. There are also, of course, those who continue to associate the brand with the original concept and the joke that theirs is "teacher's clothes of 'new, in fact', new message, in fact" has still been around. "New" has used this comparison ironically in a campaign that offered discounts to this professional group
"It was very necessary," says Laura Núñez, consultant and coordinator of the master's degree in fashion management and sustainability at the ESDi design school. The expert recalls that Desigual's loyal following has aged, and the brand is experiencing the same. That's why they've tried to make inroads into a younger customer base, the Generation Z. "They're working hard, but there's still work to be done. The difficult part is maintaining the initial identity and values while updating and connecting with this new target audience," says Núñez. The brand, she adds, is investing heavily in its digital communications, but the change in its physical store space has yet to be fully implemented.
Fashion sector strategic consultant Pau Almar agrees on the issue of generational change and highlights Desigual's internal debate between evolving with its customers or seeking out new ones. In his opinion, this change in positioning hasn't yet worked very well. "To revive a brand, you have to touch many more keys: content management, but also the product, the stores..." comments Almar. For now, one of the most obvious changes can be seen in the design of the collections, where the combinations of colors and different signature fabrics of the house—which still have a prominent role—have been nuanced and are more restrained than in the brand's origins. "Behind this, there's also an explanation linked to cost, because manufacturing embroidery is more expensive," the expert points out.
Desigual remains headed by its founder and owner, Thomas Meyer, who in 2018 repurchased the 10% stake held by the French fund Eurazeo and now serves as its creative director. However, various industry sources point to two key figures in this new phase for the company. On the one hand, its CEO since 2018, Alberto Ojinaga, who has applied financial discipline to return to the black in the last fiscal year, with pre-tax profits of €3.1 million. On the other hand, Jan Rivera, global artistic director and responsible for activating this aesthetic shift in the brand.
New campaigns and collaborations
Carlos Alonso, director of The Fashion Business School and strategic consultant for international brands, highlights the "boldness" of Desigual and its founder and believes the company is managing to "elevate" its image. "Right now, they've left behind the anecdotal, like putting the logo upside down, and have entered a more mature concept that is making the brand gain meaning," he explains. In this sense, he emphasizes the success of recent campaigns such as the collaboration with Spanish actress Ester Expósito: "It's not as eccentric; before, it was somewhat caricature-like, and now it has a much more editorial approach," adds Alonso. Regarding the slimming down of the store network, the expert includes it as a global trend, with brands prioritizing points of sale in strategic locations to reduce costs.
"Is it a good move? Yes, if Desigual continues to invest in the brand's narrative, design evolution, and adaptive retail formats. The brand has the potential to regain relevance, but it must remain bold in its execution, not just its message," notes Ghalia Boustani, a retail consultant. For Almar, however, the real leap forward won't happen while Meyer is still involved with the project: "He's a guru with many ideas, but to make the brand fashionable you have to make sacrifices and changes in the product, marketing, and company management. Desigual is his child, and he won't want to touch that. It will have to be done by someone who...
