Other highlights (36)
“We are here to try to get an interview with one of Sweden's most powerful, yet most anonymous, businessmen. The man who is a pioneer in so-called "fast fashion" - cheap clothes with fast turnover - and who has built the world's second-largest clothing chain with over four thousand stores. In Sweden, its position is almost unique. Most Swedes have shopped at Hennes & Mauritz at some point: bought a dress for 149 kronor or a 5-pack of socks for 79.90 kronor.”
“There is talk of an invisible success formula, a magical corporate culture, the so-called "H&M spirit". Positive energy and team spirit beyond the ordinary. A cult, some say - when they are sure the boss isn't listening.”
“Despite H&M's position in Sweden - and in the world - not much is known to the public about the man who heads the company's hundreds of thousands of employees. H&M is Sweden's sixth largest public stock, with almost a quarter of a million private owners who receive scant information from the company. Not even out in the stores, where he is known as "the big boss", do the employees know much about who he really is. Even less is known by the seamstresses sewing H&M's clothes thousands of miles away.”
“Right now, everything feels far away, as he travels through the USA accompanied by his publicity man on a rather unplanned hunt for new business ideas. The journey has taken him from New York all the way down to New Orleans, then back up to Philadelphia and Washington, and finally across the continent heading towards California.”
“Erling decides to give it a try. Poinsettias and pens have taught him a lot about how to make a profit – high turnover and as small an inventory as possible. Now he wants to try the same model in fashion.”
“In New York, he marvels at how the successful fashion chain Lerner Shops can sell inexpensive clothes in large volumes so quickly and effectively. Similar to how his father sold charcuterie. In the shops in New York, several cashiers stood at the register working solely on handling payments. No long fittings, which women usually love. Here, customers handled such things themselves. Could this work back home? Fashion sold as if it were fresh ham?”
“There's a lot at stake. If the establishment fails, Erling Persson exposes his entire family to problems – in addition to all the sacrifices they have already made to even be able to open. His reputation as a businessman is good, but a reputation must be nurtured. He has chosen Västerås because he wants to test his business idea a bit away from Stockholm. If it goes south, it would not tarnish his other business activities. But Erling Persson has done business before and tries to shake off the worry.”
“how he organized the company to be successful. Buyers work in groups according to a budget system where they have great freedom. Each oversees their goods in close contact with store managers. Every Tuesday, the so-called "pace" meeting takes place, during which Erling Persson meticulously reviews the buyers' blue and white data lists of how much of each item has been sold in the store.”
“"The company's way of thinking must always be kept current. They should take chances, make deals on their own initiative. Those who are afraid never achieve any results," says Erling Persson.[9](private://read/01jas9tvg84jycb27616w1f9k8/#note-9)”
“– The reward was not in the pay envelope. If you showed initiative and took responsibility, you were rewarded. "Go to Värnamo, go to Uddevalla, go to London," they would say when there was a new opening. You did not say no. I got a job in Germany in 1984. I was only 28 then.[11](private://read/01jas9tvg84jycb27616w1f9k8/#note-11)”
“Thomas Enderstein describes an extreme drive from the owners to constantly make better and better deals. One was never good enough.”
“– It creates an incredible pride in working for the company, a cohesion. You quickly receive a lot of responsibility. Then you felt that you were an important part in the machinery.”
“Erling Persson had a special method to test the loyalty of his subordinate managers in the countries where H&M expanded, Enderstein explains: a pub crawl.”
“After just a month on the job, he sat at his desk in Hötorgsskrapan in central Stockholm one day when Erling Persson appeared by his side. Erling Persson looked down at Thomas, placed a car key on his desk, and said, "We're having a crayfish party in the countryside, and I need crayfish. The car is in the garage."
"My task became to go down to the garage, take out his large Mercedes, and drive up to Östermalmshallen to enter one of the fine fish and seafood shops there. Retrieve the ordered amount of crayfish and then drive out to the summer place in the archipelago on Värmdö."
Even Thomas Enderstein, with his degree from the School of Business, Economics and Law, had to be a gofer when the great leader called.
"That was typical of Erling. He knew I was new. He wanted to test if the young lad could handle it."”
“By the end of the 60s, there are thirty-eight H&M stores across Sweden. "The massive post-war baby booms, wage drift, and the teenage dominance in fashion have created a never-ending demand," writes Veckans Affärer in 1967 in a portrait of Erling Persson.[13](private://read/01jas9tvg84jycb27616w1f9k8/#note-13) He has also opened stores in Norway and Denmark. H&M is catching up with both Gulins and KappAhl.”
“At that time, around four thousand people worked at H&M. It was still a relatively small and personal company. As a leader, Stefan Persson was not particularly present in daily operations, Lemner says, but if you asked to talk to him, you could. The decision-making paths were short and informal.”
“- It was often corridor meetings. Big decisions could be made on the spot after five minutes of discussion, which might seem completely insane. They kept things simple and without complicating matters.”
“- Outside these doors, it's none of anyone's business. To succeed here, you have to follow the unwritten rules, Thomas Enderstein explained the thinking. One should not talk too much with each other at all, problems were solved with the closest colleagues. No after work. Outside the company, one did not socialize with colleagues. According to Erling Persson himself, it was out of consideration for the staff.”
“"In this industry, it's rarely about unique products that competitors can't also acquire. Then it's the marketing that becomes somehow unique and secret."[38](private://read/01jas9tvg84jycb27616w1f9k8/#note-38)”
“He would often visit Germany, at least once a month. He just showed up at the office, completely unannounced. He had taken the morning flight from London. With Erling Persson present, things happened immediately, Thomas Enderstein explains. If the management in Germany had requested additional supplies, it could happen that the Sweden office said no. "You have enough relative to the sales," they thought. But when Erling Persson called and said that the warehouse was empty, they sent supplies immediately. No discussion.”
“However, with Erling Persson's personal presence, important progress is made. One of the most important success factors for the newly opened stores in Germany is how the display windows are designed before opening. Each one is arranged by the same interior designer. Thereafter, they are inspected by Erling Persson personally. And he can have opinions about the smallest detail.”
“- Because he did that, he gained great respect among the store staff, Thomas Enderstein explains. "The very Erling Persson comes and looks at our display window." The success in Germany was precisely because we had the combination of Edgar Rosenberg and Erling. With support from Erling, I could also push things through on the purchasing side. Change the assortment.”
“In February 1985, 68-year-old Erling Persson transfers a large portion of his shares to his son Stefan Persson, now 38 years old.[39](private://read/01jas9tvg84jycb27616w1f9k8/#note-39) This means that the son, as the majority owner, can theoretically make decisions alone at the shareholders' meetings. During this record year, Erling Persson also leaves H&M's board. In four years, with Germany as the driving force, the company doubles in size. However, the German managers unexpectedly resign when they feel that Stefan Persson does not want to share the profits from the successes, Thomas Enderstein tells.”
“The fact that the heads of the most important new H&M market, Germany, are quitting in protest against Stefan Persson's way of managing the company is not disclosed to either shareholders or the public. Instead, Stefan Persson is named Leader of the Year 1988.[40](private://read/01jas9tvg84jycb27616w1f9k8/#note-40) The jury writes that "Stefan Persson is a merchant in the purest sense of the word" and in the award from Leadership and Economic Business Management, EF, it states that he has surpassed his father. "He took over the baton and he has shown that he can run even faster and better." Stefan Persson is described as a cautious, listening, low-key person who dislikes self-promotion.”
“In 1987, H&M turns forty, and Stefan Persson celebrates by inviting the press to a big party at the English castle Hever Castle, dating from the 12th century, a two-hour drive from London. The castle had been inhabited by Henry VIII's second wife Anne Boleyn. Present are models from Sweden, England, and France. H&M offers a buffet and fashion show in the old castle garden. A smiling Stefan Persson is photographed in the castle park with a glass of champagne in his hand, flanked by his PR chief.[42](private://read/01jas9tvg84jycb27616w1f9k8/#note-42)”
“The first out as Christmas model is Elle Macpherson, who in the fashion industry is nicknamed "The Body". Yes, the whole "big six" of supermodels - Elle Macpherson, Cindy Crawford, Naomi Campbell, Claudia Schiffer, Christy Turlington, and Linda Evangelista - are doing H&M campaigns. That Elle Macpherson is the first out is a decision made by Stefan Persson himself, he says in an interview a few years later. He mentions that he first falls for a woman's eyes. "From them comes warmth, humor, and radiance." The interview is conducted after his divorce from Pamela, and he comments on the separation with an openness that is unusual for him.[44](private://read/01jas9tvg84jycb27616w1f9k8/#note-44)”
“"I think this is absolutely terrible. Being a model is her profession. If she has anorexia, it is a matter between her and her doctor, and possibly her family," Stefan Persson thunders, continuing: "There is surely no way to determine whether she has diabetes or if she suffers from cancer or if she has AIDS or anorexia. This is certainly not sick advertising, rather it is a sick debate. There are surely anorexics at H&M. They are allowed to keep working here. We are not going to demand any medical examination or any teaching certificate."”
“The criticism against the Christmas campaign, which is called sexist, just grows. Ahead of the Christmas shopping season in 1993, Stefan Persson responds by letting the model Marcus Schenkenberg pose in H&M's underwear, which somewhat silences the critics. But the next model who adorns the street corners in Sweden's cities causes more uproar than ever before. Stefan Persson has chosen Playboy model Anna Nicole Smith.”
“"No. That is not at all the purpose for us to get this kind of publicity. I don't think it harms either," replies Stefan Persson. "First and foremost, I want to say that I support and sympathize a lot with what the women's shelter accomplishes. But I definitely do not share the opinions about H&M's advertising. And perhaps that was not to be expected otherwise. I actually do not think there is a single element of pornography in this advertising."”
“H&M continues to run Christmas ads with "this year's traffic hazards." Next up is Pamela Anderson, best known for her slow-motion running on the beach in the TV series Baywatch, wearing a tiny red swimsuit. Among consumers, this strategy is taking hold. Other clothing giants are launching their own lingerie campaigns.”
“H&M spends four to five percent of its turnover on advertising. In 1994, it amounts to over half a billion.[49](private://read/01jas9tvg84jycb27616w1f9k8/#note-49) According to a source with good insight, this percentage remains the same in the coming years. When the company has surpassed one hundred billion in turnover, this means around four billion kronor in advertising budget.[50](private://read/01jas9tvg84jycb27616w1f9k8/#note-50)”
“Hösten 1996 har Sveriges skatteminister [Thomas Östros](private://read/01jas9tvg84jycb27616w1f9k8/#in-332) fått ett bekymmer på halsen. Året innan hade regeringen höjt skatterna för att klara den ekonomiska krisen. Det är djup lågkonjunktur, med ständiga företagskonkurser, nerdragningar i välfärden och en hög arbetslöshet. Ett av få bolag som mår riktigt bra är H&M.”
“"I personally would have no problem living somewhere else, those who are prepared to take ownership must today either sell shares to afford their taxes – or move abroad."”
“"The government and other politicians accuse corporate leaders of threats, but they must realize that with the EU, we are in a new competition situation. Naturally, companies choose the most attractive areas. It's up to the politicians to ensure they create attractive opportunities for investors and entrepreneurs," says Stefan Persson.”
“Stefan Persson has not considered what he will do with the millions that previously went to taxes, he tells Svenska Dagbladet: "I haven't thought much about it, but they go to private investments."[66](private://read/01jas9tvg84jycb27616w1f9k8/#note-66)”
“"In cases where the rules have not required it, I have never gone public with what I do with my private placements and I am not doing it now either," Stefan Persson tells Dagens Industri.[69](private://read/01jas9tvg84jycb27616w1f9k8/#note-69)”
