Hugo Boss outlook worsens after Mike Ashley’s Frasers takes control

Hugo Boss has cut its outlook for sales and profit in the face of weakening consumer demand, just days after Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group took control of the German fashion house. The luxury retailer had been expecting its performance to take a hit from its turnaround plan but told shareholders this has been worsened by a “persistently subdued consumer environment”.  Analysts described this update as a blow to Frasers, the FTSE 250-listed retail group which gained control of Hugo Boss last week following a months-long pursuit. The German fashion house told shareholders it expects to post full-year earnings of between €250m and €300m, below previous expectations of between €300m and €350m. Hugo Boss said its full-year sales will decline by a high-single digit percentage, while it had previously been expecting takings to slip by a mid- to high-single figure. The group blamed this on “softer demand” and the impact of its investment in new technology, including artificial in