El Corte Inglés ends 2024 with its highest revenue in 14 years

Madrid – Spanish department store group El Corte Inglés (ECI) presented its financial results for the 2024/2025 financial year. This period, which ended on February 28, saw the company, chaired by Marta Álvarez, achieve its highest revenue in 14 years.

According to information provided by the management of the Spanish group, ECI ended its last financial year with total revenue of 16.68 billion euros. This figure is two percent higher than the 16.33 billion euros recorded during its previous financial year of 2023; this percentage rises to 4.3 percent on a like-for-like (LFL) basis. Put into greater context, this represents ECI’s best turnover since 2010, when it generated total revenue of 16.41 billion euros.

In terms of profitability, the company experienced growth of 4.5 percent in its gross margin, a development that they highlighted was driven by “the strong performance of the own brand” which complements the commercial offering of its stores and points of sale. This performance allowed the company to record EBITDA of 1.21 billion euros (up 11.9 percent year-over-year (YoY)), which translated into a net profit of 512 million euros (up 6.7 percent). Excluding extraordinary expenses and income, this resulted in a recurring net profit of 470 million euros. This improvement in profitability was accompanied by a reduction in the company's debt of 263 million euros.

“In the 2024/25 financial year,” ECI stated in a press release, “El Corte Inglés achieved significant growth in its main business areas, as well as in all financial metrics.” This “strong performance”, they emphasised, “reflects improvements in management efficiency, a commitment to customer service, and continuous innovation and quality in its products”.

Fashion and beauty as main revenue streams

Breaking down this performance by business area, retail sales, which accounts for the bulk of the company's activity and that of its shopping centres, remained ECI’s main source of revenue, with a global figure of 12.98 billion euros (up one percent, up 3.9 percent LFL). The solid performance of fashion and beauty sales stood out, reaching 5.70 billion euros (up 4.9 percent); food and hospitality reached 3.04 billion euros (up 4.8 percent); and home and electronics reached 2.70 billion euros (up 3.4 percent). This growth was reinforced by the online channel, through which the company achieved a turnover of over 891.7 million euros (up 3.9 percent), resulting in a retail EBITDA of 922 million euros.

As for the rest of ECI’s main business areas, its travel division, Viajes El Corte Inglés, recorded revenue of 3.45 billion euros (up 4.3 percent), achieving an EBITDA of 101 million euros; Financiera El Corte Inglés recorded a net profit of 50 million euros (up 22.8 percent); and Seguros El Corte Inglés a net profit of 71 million euros, after growing by 8.6 percent. Completing these items was revenue of 83 million euros collected from the rental and commercialisation of various spaces in the group's centres to other operators, such as opticians and hairdressers, to complement the customer offering.

Outlook for 2025

Looking ahead to the new financial year, ECI simply stated that “the company faces the 2025/2026 financial year with positive prospects in its various business areas”. These forecasts are already influenced by the new five-year strategic plan, for 2025 to 2030, which is still pending presentation, and which the new management team, led by Gastón Bottazzini, has been working on for almost a year. Bottazzini’s position was strengthened last April when it was decided to abolish the Executive Committee, through which Álvarez had been closely supervising his decisions.