Samsonite International S.A. reported sales from its Gregory backpacks rose 15.9 percent to $59.4 million from $51.2 million a year ago. Sales on a currency-neutral basis grew 16.2 percent.
Overall, for the year ended December 31, 2021, Samsonite companywide recorded net sales of US$2,020.8 million, an increase of 35.1 percent year-on-year, and 43.5 percent lower than 2019. Net sales in North America and Latin America saw a faster recovery, increasing by 47.0 percent, 3 and 49.3 percent year-on-year, respectively, compared to Asia and Europe, where net sales rose by 20.3 percent and 37.7 percent year-on-year, respectively, during 2021. Compared to 2019, 2021 net sales in North America, Asia, Europe, and Latin America were lower by 38.0 percent, 48.4 percent, 47.6 percent and 26.8 percent, respectively.
For the year ended December 31, 2021, net sales of the Group’s core travel brands Samsonite, Tumi and American Tourister increased year-on-year by 36.3 percent, 56.3 percent and 37.8 percent, respectively. Compared to 2019, net sales of Tumi experienced the strongest recovery, with 2021 net sales coming in 34.5 percent lower than 2019, while net sales of Samsonite and American Tourister were lower by 44.1 percent and 47.6 percent, respectively.
Samsonite’s Other segments, including High Sierra, Kamiliant, ebags, Xtrem, Lipault, Hartmann, Saxoline, and Secret, had sales of $153.6 million in the year, up 2.4 percent on a reported basis and 2.0 percent on a currency-neutral basis.
The Group’s gross profit margin expanded to 54.5 percent for 2021, an increase of 850 basis points compared to the 46.0 percent recorded in 2020, and 90 basis points below the 55.4 percent registered in 2019, despite increased product, freight and duty costs. Adjusted EBITDA was US$182.3 million for 2021, an improvement of US$401.1 million from an Adjusted EBITDA loss of US$218.8 million in 2020. As a result, Samsonite recorded Adjusted Net Income of US$17.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2021, a significant improvement of US$423.5 million from the Adjusted Net Loss of US$406.1 million for 2020.
Kyle Gendreau, CEO, said “While the recent wave of new COVID-19 cases due to the Omicron variant caused sales recovery to slow in January 2022, considering vaccine effectiveness and higher vaccination rates today compared to a year ago, we are hopeful that the effects of COVID-19 on everyday life will continue to moderate, driving a sustained recovery in travel. Separately, we continue to see some sales volatility due to shipping delays and port congestion, especially in North America. That said, our performance has improved in February 2022. Overall, the decline in Samsonite’s net sales for the first two months of 2022 compared to the same period in 20192, 11 was about in line with the 28.0 percent, 3 declines in the fourth quarter of 2021 when compared to the fourth quarter in 2019.
“I also want to address the situation in Ukraine and the resulting humanitarian crisis in the region. Our thoughts are with all who have been impacted, including our employees and their families as well as our customers and partners. Until further notice, we have suspended all commercial activities in Russia. We have temporarily closed our 37 company-operated retail stores in Russia as well as our e-commerce sites there. We have also stopped all product shipments both into and within Russia and have suspended all further investments there. Business development activities and advertising in Russia have also been temporarily discontinued.
“Samsonite’s employees around the world, including our colleagues in Russia, have made great sacrifices and shown extraordinary resilience and dedication over the last two years. Our decision to temporarily suspend commercial activities in Russia is a difficult one, not least because of our employees there. Our top priority has been and continues to be the safety of our colleagues, and we continue to support our team members and their families in the region. We continue to monitor this situation closely and hope that a peaceful and just resolution can be achieved soon.
“Samsonite is donating over 10,000 pieces of luggage and bags to support Ukrainian refugees and will also contribute US$1.0 million to support humanitarian relief efforts. The conflict, and the resulting rise in geopolitical tensions, have added some uncertainty to our outlook for 2022. While Group net sales of our Russian business have ranged from only 1.5 to 2.0 percent of global sales annually over the last three years, the economic effects of the conflict have caused additional headwinds. Nevertheless, we are hopeful that such headwinds will not materially disrupt our recovery. With our dedicated and responsive teams and substantial liquidity position, we are confident we have the capacity not only to navigate through the ongoing effects of COVID-19 and increased geopolitical tensions but also to invest for long-term growth and success,” concluded Gendreau.
Photo court Gregory, shown Baltoro 65
