Author: Thomas J. Ryan

JD Sports reported earnings before tax and exceptional items declined 46.9 percent in the first half of its North America operations, which include Finish Line, Shoe Palace, DTLR, and JD locations. The company attributed the decrease to the lack of fiscal stimulus that boosted year-ago results and the supply shortage from major international brands.

In its first Investor Day in its 84-year history, Columbia Sportswear Co. outlined a broad strategy to increase sales by 9 percent to 11 percent and EPS by 12 percent to 15 percent on a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR ) from 2022 to 2025. The gains are expected to be led by footwear, international expansion and digital sales growth.

Barclays lowered its rating on Nike to “Equal-Weight” from “Overweight” due to concerns over inventory risks, a recovery in China and continued North American demand.

Outdoor participation has proven sticky as participation grew in 2021, according to the Outdoor Foundation’s recently released 2022 Outdoor Participation Trends Report, which showed that outdoor participants increased by 6.9 percent since the pandemic began in early 2020, with the number of new and returning (lapsed) outdoor participants up 26 percent.

In an interview with SGB Executive Steve Lawrence, EVP and chief merchandising officer, Academy Sports + Outdoors, talked about how the retailer updated its disciplines in inventory management to drive outperformance in the second quarter and position it for second-half growth.

Speaking at the Piper Sandler Growth Frontiers Conference, Crocs, Inc., CEO Andrew Rees said that despite the company’s recently reducing expectations for the current year due to macroeconomic conditions, it is still on the path to reaching revenue of $5 billion by 2026.

Cowen downgraded its rating on Adidas to “Market Perform” from “Outperform” due to signs of lower digital traffic and lower Average Unit Retail Prices for the brand, as well as the risk of the end of its Kayne West partnership.

Speaking at the Raymond James Consumer Conference, John Walbrecht, president at Clarus Corp., said he doesn’t expect the company’s portfolio of premium brands, such as Black Diamond Equipment and Sierra Bullets, to be significantly impacted by inflationary pressures because of “super-fan” enthusiasts’ affinity to their sport and their favorite brands.

At Nike’s annual meeting held in its headquarters in Beaverton, OR, John Donahoe, president and CEO, said the company continues to see “structural tailwinds,” including the consumer’s movement toward health and wellness as well as toward digital, helping empower its Consumer Direct Acceleration (CDA) strategy. Nike officials also discussed innovation success, China’s recovery and supply chain disruption.

Shoe Carnival is on a roll, with earnings for the first half of 2022 surpassing all full year of earnings in the 44 years since its founding, except for 2021. SGB Executive talked with Mark Worden, the family footwear chain’s CEO since 2021, about the company’s strengths in the apparel footwear category, recent success elevating margins and overall momentum.

In an affidavit, as part of the bankruptcy court filing of Olympia Sports Acquisitions, Mark Coffey, CEO since March 2022, attributed the filing to sales challenges brought on by the pandemic, a failed software contract and a restrictive loan agreement.

The list of trade creditors landing on the unsecured creditors’ list of Olympia Sports’ bankruptcy read like a Who’s Who of the active industry’s major players, including Nike, Columbia Sportswear, Rawlings, Olukai, and Mitchell & Ness. Fleet Feet holds the largest unsecured claim of $3 million.

Speaking at Goldman Sachs 29th Annual Global Retailing Conference, Jill Timm, CFO at Kohl’s, remains confident that the department store’s efforts to “be a destination for the active and casual lifestyle” shopper will pay off long-term despite active underperforming in the second quarter due to supply chain constraints impacting athletic footwear.

American Outdoor Brands’ sales in the first quarter ending July 31 dropped 28.1 percent, to $43.7 million. Gains in its direct-to-consumer e-commerce sales were more than offset by weakness in wholesale sales due in large part to bloated inventories in the marketplace that particularly impacted the shooting sports category.

Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc.’s sales plunged 69.3 percent in the fiscal first quarter ending July 31 and were also down 11.6 percent versus the pre-pandemic first quarter of 2019 due to extensive inventory correction in the marketplace. Mark Smith, president and CEO, order rates have also rebounded since the end of the first quarter and the company reiterated its cash generation and operating earnings for the full fiscal year.