SGB Executive

DSW’s strong pivot toward athleisure over the last year has made the off-price chain the second-largest retailer of women’s athleisure in the U.S. behind only Nike, Roger Rawlins, CEO of Designer Brands, DSW’s parent, said on his company’s third-quarter analyst conference call. But that wasn’t enough to offset DSW’s exposure to dressier looks that remain out of fashion amid the pandemic.

G-III Apparel Group reported third-quarter sales were sharply below year-ago levels and predicted a 30 percent fourth-quarter slump. However, results recovered better than expected as shifts toward athleisure and more casual offerings are paying off. Said Morris Goldfarb, G-III’s CEO, “Our merchants early on were able to identify the meaningful shift in consumer demand toward casual and comfortable clothing, as well as outdoor active attire.”

With design improvements making it easier than ever, snowboarders are also venturing off-piste thanks to the burgeoning category of splitboards.

Mimi Vaughn, president and CEO, said, “While the casual part of Journeys’ assortment has been gaining ground over fashion athletic all year, Q3 delivered the largest quarterly growth so far.”

Smith & Wesson Brands reported its second consecutive record-breaking quarter for the 168-year-old company. Mark Smith, president and CEO, also expressed confidence that new hunt customers gained during the pandemic would drive growth for the company in the years ahead.

Tilly’s reported sales slumped 9.4 percent in the third quarter ended October 31 as a result of delayed Back-to-School selling and COVID-19-related restrictions on in-store operations. Women’s was the only positive sales category in the period.

Boosted by a recovery in sales in September and October, Zumiez reported earnings soared 51.6 percent in the third quarter as same-store sales jumped 8.1 percent. Rick Brooks, CEO, said, “Strong digital activity and robust full-price selling across all geographies highlighted our top-line performance.”

Duluth Trading reported strong online sales to offset continued declines in in-store sales in the third quarter. The retailer warned that in-store traffic had worsened in recent weeks in line with surges in COVID-19 cases. Steve Schlecht, executive chairman and CEO, told analysts, “The resurgence of COVID-19 is a concern regarding in-store shopping, and it also clouds the outlook for consumer spending.”

Speaking at Morgan Stanley’s Virtual Global Consumer & Retail Conference, Shoe Carnival officials elaborated on plans to start ramping up expansion efforts in 2021 after closing a number of underperforming locations over the last three years that reduced its store count from 417 to 383 currently.

Sportsman’s Warehouse Holdings reported sales jumped 59.1 percent in the third quarter to far outpace Wall Street’s targets as the hunt & fish chain was challenged keeping up with hot demand for hunt, fish and camping products. Said Jon Barker, CEO, “We worked closely with our vendors and provided our customers with inventory levels that we believe were unmatched by our direct competitors.”

At Morgan Stanley’s Virtual Global Consumer & Retail Conference on Wednesday morning, Lauren Hobart, president at Dick’s Sporting Goods, expressed confidence that strength in core categories, access to new customers and a potential rebound in team sports will contribute to ongoing sales momentum in 2021.

The latest buzzword, the Norwegian word Friluftsliv (pronounced free-loofts-livis), is a Scandinavian concept embracing outdoor adventures no matter your age in all weather. SGB Executive caught up with outdoor eCommerce brand Backcountry.com to see what’s trending this season and what consumers are buying

Online sales again saw record growth on Black Friday while in-store traffic tumbled by half in an expected subdued start to the traditional holiday season.