Newell Brands reported sales in its Outdoor & Recreation Segment in 2020 were held back by weakness at the Marmot technical apparel business and Contigo beverage business due to reduced on-the-go activities during the pandemic. However, Coleman experienced its first positive sales annual growth since 2017.

Newell’s Outdoor & Recreation segment includes Aerobed, Bubba, Campingaz, Coleman, Contigo, Marmot, Stearns and ExOfficio.

“I’m especially excited to share that Coleman, which is one of Newell’s largest brands, returned to growth during 2020,” said Ravi Saligram, Newell’s president and CEO, on a conference call with analysts. “What a way to celebrate the brand’s 120th anniversary.”

Overall, he said the Outdoor & Recreation Segment delivered a better performance in the back half of the year, particularly in the outdoor equipment category, such as coolers, tents and stoves. Saligram said,” We also saw several favorable developments on the market share front in several core categories such as coolers and tents, where we gained about 90 and 190 basis points of share, respectively.”

Coleman benefited from several successful launches, including the redesigned Skydome tent. More innovation, including a Coleman Reunion collection of coolers and new styles and color updates across Coleman’s cooler and tent lines, is planned to build on the momentum in 2021.

Saligram added, “Although I’m certainly encouraged by the progress we’ve made in our outdoor equipment business, we have more work to do on technical apparel, which is especially led by the Marmot brand and beverage with Contigo. We have brought in capable leaders to do just that, and I expect a stronger 2021.”

In the fourth quarter, sales in Newell’s Outdoor & Recreation segment were down 7.4 percent to $249 million compared with $268 million in the prior-year period.

Newell noted that core sales in its Outdoor & Recreation segment declined 7.4 percent in the quarter due to softness in North America, which more than offset improved results across other major regions. Performance in North America was negatively impacted by the acceleration of shipments into Q3, ahead of the October 1st conversion of Coleman North America to SAP, and challenges in the beverage and technical apparel businesses.

The reported operating loss for the segment in the quarter was $9 million, or negative 3.6 percent of sales, compared with a loss of $75 million, or negative 28.0 percent, in the prior-year period. Excluding non-recurring charges, the normalized operating loss was $5 million, or negative 2.0 percent of sales, compared with $2 million, or negative 0.7 percent of sales, in the prior-year period.

In the full year, the segment showed sales of $1.29 billion against $1.41 billion a year ago, a decline of 8.6 percent. Core sales were down 8.7 percent in the year. In the second half of 2020, core sales grew year-over-year, reflecting a more robust demand for outdoor equipment products.

The reported operating loss was $418 million against a loss of $64 million a year ago. The normalized operating profit after non-recurring charges came to $89 million against Pro-forma operating income of $107 million a year ago, representing a decline of 16.8 percent.

Newell’s other core brands include Rubbermaid, Paper Mate, Sharpie, Dymo, EXPO, Parker, Elmer’s, Oster, Sunbeam, FoodSaver, Mr. Coffee, Rubbermaid Commercial, Products, Graco, Baby Jogger, NUK, Calphalon, First Alert, Mapa, Spontex, and Yankee Candle.

Photo courtesy Coleman