Sparks

Zalando’s Q326 adjusted EBIT rose 10.6% y-o-y to €106.5m, a margin of 3.4% versus 3.2%, but the increase came entirely from B2B, where adjusted EBIT was €42.2m versus €19.6m. Management attributes this to overhead leverage and higher gross margin from scaling the Zalando E-commerce Operating System (ZEOS) and SCAYLE. B2C adjusted EBIT fell 16% to €64.4m, a margin of 2.3% versus 2.8%, as B2C gross margin declined 0.7pp to 41.0%. This reflects targeted investments in attractive offers, especially in sneakers, alongside higher marketing on an earlier autumn/winter campaign and World Cup activity. Pro-forma GMV grew 6.1% and revenue 3.3%, against reported growth of 7.5% and 5.1% including ABOUT YOU from 11 July 2025, with partner GMV up 17.8% explaining why revenue lags GMV.

FY26 guidance was confirmed, with GMV and revenue growth in the lower half of 12–17% and adjusted EBIT of €680–720m. Q4 is the peak trading season, contributing c44% of FY25 adjusted EBIT, and the midpoint implies Q4 adjusted EBIT of c€324m, or c+23% y-o-y. Management expects margin expansion mainly from opex improvements and synergies, a broadly flat FY26 gross margin with an improvement in Q4, and a B2B adjusted EBIT margin that levels out at c 9–10% going forward from 11.9% in Q326.