SGB Update Apparel
Nike Temporarily Closes London Headquarters Over Coronavirus
Nike has temporarily closed its London headquarters in Soho as cases of coronavirus spreads in the U.K. Another Nike office at Doxford Park near Sunderland was also temporarily closed.
Savage Apparel Mergers With Five Ultimate
Savage Apparel Co., Five Ultimate, and ARIA Discs have merged to officially announce the launch of XII Brands.
Brazil’s Track & Field Files For IPO
Track & Field, a high-end fitness and lifestyle apparel brand with 231 stores in Brazil, has filed for an initial public offering with Brazil’s securities industry regulator.
Boardriders’ Debt Ratings Downgraded
Moody’s Investors Service downgraded Boardriders Inc.’s ratings, including the corporate family rating to Caa1 from B3, probability of default rating to Caa1-PD from B3-PD, and secured term loan rating to Caa1 from B3. The outlook is stable.
Lilly Pulitzer Partners With Women’s Tennis Association
Lilly Pulitzer announced a partnership with the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association). The two brands are uniting for a youth empowerment initiative, aimed to inspire confidence and optimism in future generations as part of Lilly’s new “Be the Sunshine” campaign. Lilly Pulitzer will also serve as the WTA’s exclusive fashion uniform provider.
Ross Stores Sees 4 Percent Comp Gain In Q4
Ross Stores Inc. reported earnings per share for the 13 weeks ended February 1, 2020 grew 7 percent to $1.28 on net income of $456 million. Sales for the fourth quarter of 2019 were $4.4 billion, with comparable-store sales up 4 percent on top of a 4 percent gain in the prior-year period.
Urban Outfitters’ Q4 Earnings Slump
Urban Outfitters Inc. reported earnings on an adjusted basis fell 45.6 percent in the fourth quarter. Comparable Retail segment net sales increased 4 percent, driven by growth in the digital channel, partially offset by negative retail store sales
REI Closes Corporate Campuses Over Coronavirus Precautions
REI, based in Seattle, is temporarily closing three corporate campuses in Washington state to conduct a deep cleaning process after learning that two headquarter employees may have been exposed to coronavirus. REI’s King County and Alderwood stores are also undergoing a deep cleaning.
Decathlon’s Sales Grew 9 Percent in 2019
Decathlon, the French-sporting goods chan, reported sales rose 9 percent in 2019, to over €12.4 billion ($13.78 bn).
Kohl’s Q4 Earnings Top Wall Street Targets
Kohl’s Inc. reported a small decline in earnings in the fourth quarter on flat same-store sales but both EPS and sales exceeded Wall Street’s targets. Michelle Gass, Kohl’s CEO, said, “We are encouraged by the acceleration of traffic and new customer acquisition in our stores and online driven by the unprecedented level of new brands and partnerships we launched during the year.”
Carrie Underwood Launches Fit52 Fitness App
Carrie Underwood, who launched the CALIA By Carrie Underwood line of athleisure wear five years ago at Dick’s Sporting Goods, announced the launch of her new fitness app, fit52.
Dick’s Sporting Goods To Open Four Stores In March
Dick’s Sporting Goods set plans to open two Dick’s Sporting Goods locations in Chattanooga, TN; and Hagerstown, MD; as well as two Golf Galaxy locations in Warwick, RI; and Berwyn, PA.
Nike And Columbia Sportswear Take Emergency Coronavirus Precautions
Nike closed its Oregon headquarters over the weekend and is closing European headquarters in Amsterdam on Monday and Tuesday for deep cleaning in response to the coronavirus outbreak. Columbia Sportswear also over the weekend thoroughly disinfected its offices in Portland, OR.
Shaun White Ends Olympic Skateboarding Bid
Shaun White, the three-time snowboarding champion, said he won’t try to qualify for the U.S. skateboarding team in that sport’s Olympic debut later this year in Tokyo.
Coronavirus Threatens U.S. Mall Traffic
According to a survey from Coresight Research, nearly three-quarters of U.S. consumers would stay away from malls or shopping centers if the coronavirus outbreak worsens in the U.S.
