It has been a mixed couple of weeks for some of the leading global fashion chains. Inditex continued its stellar performance with half-year profits jumping by almost a third as it sustained growth in sluggish economies in both Western Europe and emerging markets.

Clothing retailer H&M has historically relied on Europe for most of its sales

Some were not as fortunate. Hong Kong-listed retailer Esprit cited a slowing Chinese economy and the eurozone problems for its inability to meet analysts’ profit expectations. Finally, H&M reported a lower than expected 0.8% rise in third-quarter net profit, blaming the tough economic climate, as well as hot weather in August that hit spending.

Weather and macroeconomics do play a part in the difficulties fashion retailers face. But it is not convincing that both Esprit’s and H&M’s underperformance are purely down to them, especially when there are retailers such as Inditex performing so well. Surely there can be an adjustment to range planning that means the weather and macroenvironment cannot be held solely responsible for difficulties.

Overall, three key points can also be cited as causes behind the failure of H&M and Esprit to manage a satisfactory performance. First, on brand and product strategy, it is widely held that Esprit as a brand has lost its mojo. The retailer, which targets the over-30s, competes with Gap but is much pricier and is therefore a less obvious choice of shop for basics. H&M is in a better position, as its eponymous stores offer a strong directional range firmly targeted at under-30s. However, that is not so desirable in this economic climate when there is so much youth unemployment.

Second, the internet is a key issue. While Esprit has quite a good offering, H&M has been a late starter in ecommerce. The experience on H&M’s site is rather clunky and it has yet to catch on to the range of delivery options that a pure-play retailer such as Asos offers. Added to that, H&M has said it will be delaying its online launch in the US by a further nine months.

Third, a successful internationalisation strategy is key. Esprit is a very international retailer through its owned stores and franchises, but the brand has failed in North America where it withdrew this year. H&M has historically relied on Europe for the bulk of its sales but has recognised in recent years that this cannot continue and aims to grow in the southern hemisphere and Latin America. Perhaps this may be too little too late.

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