At its Investor Day on Monday, Mary Dillon, Foot Locker’s new CEO and president, outlined an ambitious “Lace Up” growth plan and said progress is being made in repairing the company’s relationship with Nike. However, shares of Foot Locker fell $2.43, or 5.8 percent, to $39.83 as earnings for the current year were guided sharply below analyst targets as the business undergoes a “reset.” (Read More)
As consumers return to fitness clubs, publicly-traded club operators Planet Fitness, Life Time Fitness and Xponential Fitness reported fourth-quarter results topping expectations and delivered upbeat forecasts for continued growth in 2023. The results were in sharp contrast to the in-home fitness equipment brands that saw revenues take a dive following pandemic-driven growth. (Read More)
Following two years of robust growth, L.L.Bean's sales fell about 1 percent in 2022, to $1.8 billion a year ago. In a statement, L.L.Bean noted that it was able to hold "onto recent gains to yield its second-strongest revenue performance in company history." (Read More)
Designer Brands, the parent of DSW, reported sales were down 7.5 percent in the fourth quarter due to a pressured consumer and a highly promotional footwear environment, particularly in athletic. However, Doug Howe, president,... (Read More)
Academy Sports + Outdoors saw fourth-quarter sales come in below plan due in part to weakness in the hunt category, but strength in apparel and footwear as well as lower freight costs helped earnings easily top analyst targets. Officials also gave an upbeat outlook for 2023 due to improved inventory content, healthy demand across most categories and the benefit of its value positioning in a more-challenged economic climate. (Read More)
Speaking at the UBS Global Consumer and Retail Conference, Andrew Rees, CEO of Crocs, Inc., said the company is "off to a great start" in 2023, driven by innovation and new product introductions from its Crocs and Hey Dude brands. (Read More)
Speaking at the BofA Securities 2023 Consumer & Retail Conference, Lauren Hobart, president and CEO at Dick’s Sporting Goods, and Ed Stack, executive chairman, discussed the chain’s transformation and other factors expected to drive continued robust top-line growth for Dick’s in the years ahead as well as why the chain is faring better than other retailers in the current inflationary climate. (Read More)
Famous Footwear's comparable store sales increased 0.7 percent in the fourth quarter, better than initial expectations, due to a strong second half in driven by athletic footwear. On a call with analysts, Jay Schmidt, CEO of Caleres, said, "This late quarter performance was driven by robust demand for key athletic brands, which the Famous team was able to capitalize on due to a stronger in-stock position compared to last year.” (Read More)
J.P. Morgan lowered its rating on Under Armour to “Neutral” from “Overweight” due in part to elevated inventory levels that drive promotions across the retail marketplace and more direct competition from Nike and Adidas. (Read More)
According to Roth MKM's 2023 Millennial Survey, Millennials increasingly prioritize health and wellness and favor Nike, Adidas and Lululemon over other activewear brands. (Read More)
American Outdoor Brands reported a 27.4 percent sales decline in the third quarter and slashed its growth targets for the current fiscal year. Company officials warned on an analyst call that the cautious ordering patterns due to elevated inventories at retail would not recover until the second half of 2023. (Read More)
On the retailer's fourth-quarter analyst call, Bob Martin, Gap, Inc.'s executive chairman and interim CEO, insisted the departure of Mary Beth Laughton as president is due to continued product missteps and not from the deteriorating health of its women's activewear brand. (Read More)
Shares of Genesco fell $6.53, or 13.7 percent, to $41.22 Thursday after the retailer gave a cautious outlook for 2023 and launched a cost-cutting program to help offset inflationary pressures that negatively impacted its flagship Journeys chain this past holiday season. Genesco also plans to close 60 Journeys stores this year. (Read More)
On his first quarterly analyst call, Bjørn Gulden, Adidas’ new CEO, said the company plans to focus on culture, wholesale service levels, local go-to-market approaches, speed to market, and brand heat to orchestrate a turnaround at Adidas. (Read More)
Dick's Sporting Goods reported plans to return to annual square footage growth, led by its House Of Sports concept, after reporting fourth-quarter results that easily surpassed Wall Street expectations, boosted by a 5.3 percent same-store gain. As many as 75-to-100 House of Sport stores are expected to open by 2027. (Read More)
Overcoming supply chain obstacles during the first half, Brooks Running managed 6 percent growth in 2022 to reach record annual revenues of about $1.2 billion. Dan Sheridan, president and COO, talks to SGB about how the year played out, brand accomplishments and his outlook for Brooks and the running industry for 2023. (Read More)
Founded in 1958 in Lakewood, CO, Christy Sports has grown to 63 stores across five Western states and has an online platform. CEO Matt Gold talked with SGB Executive about the store's uniqueness, commitment to customer service, the pandemic's impact on business, and the current inflationary environment. (Read More)
On its fourth-quarter analyst call, Compass Diversified officials said some subsidiaries in its Branded Consumer segment, including BOA and PrimaLoft, had been hurt in the fourth quarter by a wholesale order slowdown caused by elevated inventories in the marketplace. Those pressures it expects will continue through the first half of 2023. (Read More)
Kohl's logged a surprise steep loss in the fourth quarter and provided EPS guidance for 2023 that was well below analyst expectations as the chain overhauls its merchandise mix to deemphasize active wear in favor of casual and career wear and explore newer opportunities in home and gifting. (Read More)
On an analyst call, John Walbrecht, president at Clarus Corp., said inventory destocking at Black Diamond’s larger retail accounts in North America continued in the fourth quarter, wiping out open-to-buy opportunities and driving a sharp revenue decline. The pain is expected to continue in the first quarter but Walbrecht said demand for Black Diamond remains healthy. (Read More)