Secret Sales acquires Germany’s Dress-For-Less

Fast-growing British off-price e-tailer Secret Sales is acquiring Germany-based Dress-For-Less, which it said is “Europe’s leading discount fashion and beauty retailer”. 

The marketplace for off-price retail in fashion, sportswear and beauty added that it’s a “natural next step on an aggressive merger and acquisition strategy, this deal solidifies Secret Sales as one of the most formidable discount retailers in Europe, with presence across six European territories”.  

The company has already established itself in the UK and expanded into Ireland, Belgium, the Netherlands and Spain. As well as Germany, it’s also “actively pursuing other significant targets across Europe”.  

So what does Dress-For-Less bring to the table? The German business specialises in discount fashion and beauty with a turnover of €100 million in 2023 from brands including Tommy Hilfiger, Calvin Klein and Marc O’Polo. 

Secret Sales said the buy will provide its own partner brands and retailers with “access to a dramatically increased market share and millions of customers across Europe”. 

Dress-For-Less will be powered by its new owner’s back-end technology platform, but “keeps its brand name, look and feel, and with a significantly increased inventory of in excess of €3 billion made available to its customers”. 

And we’re told that for retailers and brands, the move “enables them to further expand and control their pan-European off-price strategies with Secret Sales through one single platform, connected across multiple territories, while maintaining brand equity and enhancing profitability for them at every touchpoint”.  

CEO Chris Griffin said: “Secret Sales is set to dominate off-price fashion and beauty, and more importantly give brands, through one partner of choice, a route to control and profit from their non-full-price strategies across Europe. We see it as our number one goal to protect a brand’s equity while driving increased profits to their P&L. By delivering these objectives and driving our growth strategy we are delivering our promise to our partners. 

“The retail space hasn’t had it easy, but we’re continuing to see unprecedented growth in the off-price space. Dress-For-Less is second-to-none in the space in Germany and forms a key part of our growth. For brands and retailers, the potential for pan-European control and expansion offers significant revenue opportunities. And for Secret Sales and Dress-For-Less customers alike, there is now more choice than ever before.”