The increased use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) is providing a tailwind for Zalando. Europe's largest online fashion retailer announced financial results at the upper end of its target range on Thursday. Consequently, the company plans to buy back its own shares with a volume of up to 300 million euros. These shares will subsequently be cancelled.

Group revenue climbed by nearly 17 percent to 12.3 billion euros in 2025, while operating profit rose by 15.6 percent to 591 million euros. Thanks to the number of customers reaching a record high of 62 million, the Gross Merchandise Volume (GMV) traded via the platform reached 17.6 billion euros. For 2026, the company expects a further acceleration of growth.

Zalando further reported that AI has reduced the preparation time for campaigns from six weeks to just a few days. Simultaneously, the volume of content produced has increased by 70 percent. AI is also being increasingly deployed in logistics. "We can provide our customers and partners with offerings that were unthinkable until recently," said Robert Gentz, Co-CEO of the group. "At the same time, we are increasing the efficiency of our own operations."

(Report by Hakan Ersen, edited by Sabine Wollrab. For inquiries, please contact our editorial office at berlin.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for politics and economics) or frankfurt.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for companies and markets).)