SGB Executive

Lululemon is the second most popular brand in resale, according to ThredUp’s 11th Annual Resale Report. Other activewear brands that made its Top 20 Most Popular Brands In Resale include Patagonia, at No. 6; Vuori, in 10th place; and The North Face, at 18.

The analyst community remained bullish on Academy Sports following its Investor Day presentation that saw the retailer deliver an ambitious plan to expand its store base by 50 percent by 2027.

Shoe City, a Baltimore-based sneaker and streetwear lifestyle retail chain operating 39 stores in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C., and the online site, YCMC.com, filed for bankruptcy and will cease operations. Top unsecured creditors in the case include New Balance, Timberland, Puma, and Nike.

Converse, Crocs, Hoka, New Balance and On were among the brands in the active lifestyle space increasing their appeal with teens in Piper Sandler’s 45th semi-annual Taking Stock With Teens survey. Nike dominated teen mindshare in both footwear and apparel but lost appeal in performance offerings while Adidas, Under Armour and Vans all lost ground with teens.

At its Investor Day meeting, Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. outlined plans to open 120-to-140 new stores over the next five years through 2027, expanding its store base by 50 percent in existing and new markets. The Katy, TX-based retailer currently has 268 stores across 18 states.

L.E.K. Consulting’s second annual U.S. Footwear and Apparel Brand Heat Index* found Nike continue to dominate in popularity across athletic categories, while The North Face, Patagonia, Columbia and Ugg led the outdoor space. However, many newer brands including Hoka, On, Cotopaxi, Fjällräven and Huk gained significant traction and brand recognition that varied across genders and generations.

At the JP Morgan Retail Round Up Conference, Mary Dillon, Foot Locker’s CEO, said while Foot Locker expects to resume growth with Nike by holiday 2023, Foot Locker’s position as a multi-brand retailer will be key to capitalizing on the broadening sneaker opportunity. She said, “Being a multi-branded retailer matters because consumers want choice and they love to shop across brands.”

Last week’s announcement that Fanatics would replace Adidas as its “Official On-Ice Uniform Outfitter” marked another major step forward for the sports licensing powerhouse. However, the harsh reaction from hockey fans on social media and from some in the media shows Fanatics has work to do to improve its reputation before the deal starts in the 2024/25 season.

Lululemon Athletica, Inc. took a massive impairment charge in the fourth quarter to cover write-offs and the restructuring of its Mirror’s connected-fitness business. However, shares of Lululemon are up about 15 percent in -pre-market trading Wednesday as fourth-quarter results topped estimates and an upbeat outlook was provided for 2023.

At a recent webinar exploring SFIA’s 2023 Sports & Fitness Topline Participation Report, Tom Cove, president and CEO of SFIA, highlighted the substantial progress in improving America’s activity rates and detailed which activities benefited from the pandemic, including pickleball.

Some Wall Street analysts were pleased with Nike’s progress in working down inventory levels and reviving China in the fiscal third quarter ended February 28; others were concerned that the growth is mainly from promotions.

In February, Janji, the Boston-based running apparel brand, and Oiselle, a Seattle-based women athletic apparel brand, announced they were partnering on a merger of niche brands in the run space. Here, Dave Spandorfer, co-founder and CEO of Janji, talks about the reasons behind the merger, the mission behind each brand and the Janji story.

Add Beyoncé to the list of collaboration woes for Adidas. According to reports from The Hollywood Reporter and TMZ, Adidas ended its partnership with Beyoncé and shuttered the Ivy Park athleisure line.