SGB Executive

American Outdoor Brands celebrated another strong set of results for the fiscal first quarter ended July 31 as 16 of the company’s 20 brands delivered growth over the comparable quarter last year and 19 of its 20 brands delivered growth over the comp period two years ago in a pre-COVID world.

Academy Sports + Outdoors sharply raised its outlook for the year as it reported record sales and earnings in the second quarter and continues to see a healthy uptick in demand for active lifestyle pursuits that began with the pandemic’s emergence. Academy officials also indicated that the chain has been able to get back in stock in most categories, including fitness and bikes, despite extensive supply chain constraints.

Lululemon shares surged overnight after the vertical active lifestyle retailer posted another strong quarter and announced the company will surpass its 2023 revenue target by the end of 2021, two years ahead of schedule. The company said second-quarter results reflected broad-based strength across its channels, regions and product categories.

The Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) released its 2021 State of the Industry Report showing that despite COVID-restrictions, sporting goods sales overall were able to recover to post a small, but positive, growth rate in 2020.

Apres and skiing and riding go hand-in-hand. A growing number of craft ski and distillery brands are taking advantage of that connection by partnering on everything from products to educational programs to increase brand awareness among consumers.

Hydration systems are doing more than keeping their users hydrated on the trail and road. They’re also helping retailers’ bottom lines, with improvements targeting a wide range of outdoor consumers.

In the prospectus for its initial public offering, IFit Health & Fitness identified seven growth drivers designed to capitalize on the expanding connected fitness marketplace.

The Top National stories and the Latest headlines across the Active Lifestyle Market for the week of August 3o, 2021 covered in the SGB Updates and delivered to your inbox every business day. This week’s Ambassador Athlete is a Fila-sponsored WTA and ATP Tour player, 17-year-old professional tennis player Robin Montgomery.

Tilly’s Inc. said strong pent-up demand following pandemic-related restrictions and a spike in the graphic T-shirt business helped produce its strongest level of sales and EPS for any quarter since its 2012 IPO. Said Ed Thomas, president and CEO, “Apparel growth has been driven by new trends in bottoms, a surge in the graphic T-shirt business, and a high adoption rate on newness generally.”

While announcing second-quarter results, Duluth Trading unveiled its Big Dam Blueprint strategic plan that recently-appointed CEO Sam Sato expects will guide the apparel chain into a digital-first future. The former Finish Line CEO said the moves are “driven in part by meaningful shifts in consumer behavior.”

Genesco Inc.’s recovery gained further momentum in the second quarter with strong gains at Journeys and its U.K.-based Schuh chain, but officials warned that supply chain disruption continues to deplete inventory levels and is expected to drive higher freight costs in the quarters ahead. Said Mimi Vaughn, president and CEO, “We’re seeing good product flow right now, but it’s lower than we would like.”

Southlake, TX Solo Stove recently acquired Chubbies Shorts, Oru Kayak and ISLE SUPs under its new Solo Brands banner. SGB Executive spoke with CEO John Merris before the announcement to learn more about the acquisitions and its direct-to-consumer business model.

Despite difficult comps versus very strong results from the comparable period last year, Smith & Wesson Brands Inc. utilized increased manufacturing capacity and relied on consumer product preferences and increased market share to post-sales growth of nearly 20 percent.

Allbirds, which, on Tuesday, filed for an initial public offering, expects to grow by expanding across categories, raising brand awareness, deepening its engagement with consumers, and opening “hundreds” of additional stores. The San Francisco-based manufacturer wrote in its prospectus, “We believe there is continued opportunity to grow our closet share as we further expand our brand and product selection.”

Sequential Brands has reached an agreement to sell its active division brands, including Gaiam, Avia and And1, to Galaxy Universal for $333 million. Galaxy will serve as a stalking horse bidder to explore higher bids for the active segment as part of Sequential Brands bankruptcy filing.