Trade War Impact Remains Uncertain
On quarterly conference calls last week, executives at both retailers and vendors said the ultimate impact of the tariff war isn’t clearly known, especially if the fourth tranche on $300 billion of imports that hit apparel and footwear items becomes effective. But most reassured analysts they’re taking or have taken steps to mitigate most of the expected damage. Comments from VF Corp, Deckers Brands, Kohl’s, JC Penney, Target, Hibbett Sports, TJX Cos. and Ross Stores.
Department Stores Disappoint In First Quarter
Department stores struggled in the first quarter while discount chains fared much better, as a whole, in terms of earnings, revenue and stock performance, based on earnings reports released in the last two weeks.
Hibbett’s Digital Efforts Gaining Traction
For a company that admittedly was “late to the ballgame” with implementing all the digital capabilities a retailer should offer its customers in today’s competitive landscape, Hibbett Sports Inc. has certainly made up for lost time. And the company showcased some of its recent digital advances during a stellar first quarter that topped revenue and earnings expectations.
Foot Locker’s Shares Tank On Weak Guidance
Shares of Foot Locker Inc. lost 16 percent on Friday after the company missed on first-quarter profit and sales and provided lackluster guidance for the second quarter. The retailer basically retained its guidance for the year.
Deckers Delivers Blowout Q4
Deckers Brands Inc., wrapping up its first year seeing revenues surpass $2 billion, reported significant gains in fourth-quarter earnings, far ahead of forecasts. Improving margins, expense cuts, early shipments of spring Ugg product and continued explosive growth for Hoka drove the outsized gains.
Aisle Talk Week Of May 20
Top headlines from the active lifestyle industry you may have missed this week, including footwear brands and retailers joining together to write a collective letter to President Trump asking him to rethink his latest tariff increase and relax the escalating trade war with China.
Title Nine Mines Sports To Empower Women
Long before the arrival of Lululemon, Fabletics, Outdoor Voices and the rest of the athleisure movement, Missy Park in 1989 founded Title Nine, becoming the first retailer to focus on selling women’s sports and fitness apparel. Park talks to SGB Executive about the many ways Title Nine is working to push the women’s movement forward, her take on the advances and shortcomings of today’s women’s sports apparel and gear, and why Title IX is still relevant to Title Nine.
Foul Weather, Late Tax Refunds Stymie Shoe Carnival’s Q1 Comps
Inclement weather and a delay in the issuance of tax refunds resulted in Shoe Carnival Inc.’s same-store sales declining in the high-single digits in February, according to company executives. March and April showed improvement, combining for a 3.6 percent increase, but they weren’t enough to overcome the quarter’s slow start as Q1 comps for the company fell 0.2 percent while Wall Street had projected a 1.6 percent gain.
Skechers Not Worried About Tariffs
Speaking at the 20th Annual B. Riley FBR Institutional Investor Conference, officials at Skechers USA Inc. said they expect no impact from the latest round of tariffs on Chinese goods and feel comfortable that it will be able to make adjustments if another round arrives.
‘New’ VF Corp. Emerging After Transformative Year
VF Corp. just completed the spinoff of its jeans division and is in the process of moving its global headquarters to Denver, CO, from Greensboro, NC, but these are only two of the significant changes at the multibillion-dollar company. After completing “one of the most transformative periods in VF’s 120-year history,” where does it go from here?
Hydro Flask Has ‘Incredible Amount Of White Space’
At Helen of Troy’s Investor Day on Tuesday, company officials talked up the continuing strong potential of Hydro Flask as it expands across categories. Larry Witt, president of the Housewares division, said, “The outdoor space like the home space has a vast number of product categories to play in, and that’s why we see an incredible amount of white space for Hydro Flask.”
Can Amazon Help Kohl’s Get Back On Track?
Kohl’s registered a disappointing first quarter, to say the least, with a high-double-digit net income drop, slight revenue dip and EPS miss. On Tuesday’s earnings call, CEO Michelle Gass told analysts, “We have adjustments underway to get us back on track.” One of those is an expanded return program with Amazon. Will it be enough?
Snipes Takes On U.S. Market
Earlier this year, German-based streetwear retailer Snipes acquired KicksUSA to mark its entry into U.S. retailing. Sven Voth, founder and managing director of Snipes, talks to SGB Executive about the reason for the acquisition and Snipes’ plans for the U.S. market.
How Asics Plans To Regain Its Stride In Run
Following 13 consecutive quarters of declines, Asics returned to growth in North America in the first quarter, led by the Performance Running category’s return to positive growth. In an interview with SGB Executtive, Richard Sullivan, EVP of sales, categories and marketing, Asics North America, discusses the reason Asics returned as title sponsor of the Los Angeles Marathon and its strategies for regaining its leadership positioning in the run category.
Baseball Bat Sales Soar In 2018 After Key Rule Change
A baseball bat rule change that USA Baseball issued in 2015 and which organizations such as Little League International adopted in January of last year helped manufacturers’ sales of bats surge 18.9 percent in 2018, according to recent wholesale data compiled by the Sports & Fitness Industry Association. The SFIA 2019 Manufacturers’ Sales Report showed that the overall sports and fitness products industry grew 2.3 percent in 2018 to $92.3 billion.
