SGB Update Footwear

Rupert Campbell Appointed Chief Commercial Officer for HeyDude
Campbell was, most recently, the president of Adidas North America, where he was responsible for leading one of the brand’s most critical markets and building relationships with wholesalers, partners and athletes.

Rural King Opens its Fifth Alabama Store in Saraland
The store carries a wide range of outdoor lifestyle and work brands, including Ariat, Browning, Carhartt, Columbia, Frogg Toggs, Henry Rifles, Huk Apparel, Keen Utility, Plano, Realtree, Remington, Under Armour, and Wolverine.

United Legwear & Apparel Taps Tony Lucia as President of ULAC Europe BV
ULAC is the licensee and core operating partner for all men’s Hurley apparel categories. The company is also a Puma NA joint venture partner, has distribution partnerships with Scotch & Soda and Ted Baker and maintains licensed brands including Skechers, Van Heusen, DKNY, Champion, Arrow, and Weatherproof.

Ross Stores Opens 19 New U.S. Locations
The company believes Ross can grow to 2,900 locations and DD’s Discounts can become a chain of 700 stores given consumers’ ongoing focus on value and convenience.

NRF Sees Import Cargo Levels Continuing to Rise Among Tariff Uncertainty
Imports from all trading partners could also be affected by a new fee the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is considering that would levy a fee between $1 million and $1.5 million each time a Chinese-built ship docks at a U.S. port.

CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor Sees February Y/Y Retail Sales Growing But Moderating
The Sporting Goods, Hobby, Music & Book Stores segment increased 3.6 percent year-over-year, up from 2.8 percent y/y growth in January. Clothing, Footwear and Accessories Stores were up 3.8 percent in February, half the trend in January.

Big Peach Running Sets to Open New Gainesville, Georgia Store
Alex and Stephanie (Fe) Rodriguez previously opened Big Peach stores in Dawsonville and Cumming, Georgia, respectively, and will now own and operate the Gainesville, GA.

Wolverine Worldwide Transitions International Business to Brand Chiefs
The move will result in the elimination of the International Group president role, which has been held by Isabel Soriano since June 2021. The company and Soriano have agreed that her employment would end on March 3, 2026.

Genesco Posts Double-Digit Q4 Comp Gain on E-Commerce Boost
A 1 percent net sales increase for the quarter reflects a 10 percent increase in comparable sales, including an 18 percent increase in e-commerce comparable sales and a 6 percent increase in same-store sales.

Academy Appoints EVP & Chief Information Officer
Sumit Anand joined Academy this month and reports directly to CEO Steve Lawrence. Anand oversees enterprise technology operations, including cybersecurity, IT infrastructure and operations, and IT shared services, supporting the company’s corporate, distribution center and retail initiatives.

Target Lays Out Strategic Plans to Drive $15 Billion+ in Sales Growth by 2030
This week, the retailer outlined for the financial community how ongoing investments will accelerate its strategy and drive billions of dollars of profitable sales growth across its multi-channel business by 2030.

The Buckle Sees February Comps Down 1.3 Percent
Net sales for the February period decreased 0.9 percent to $77.6 million from net sales of $78.2 million for the prior-year February period.

Macy’s Inc. Has Mixed Q4 Results; Shares Slip as Tariffs, Weak Consumer Impact Outlook
Macy’s, Inc. reported that net sales decreased 4.3 percent to $7.8 billion for the quarter ended February 1. Comparable store sales were down 1.1 percent on an owned basis and up 0.2 percent on an owned-plus-licensed-plus-marketplace basis.

Rip Curl and Oboz Parent KMD Names Former Nike Europe CEO as New Group CEO
Brent Scrimshaw transitioned from a non-executive role on the company’s Board to assume the role of Group CEO and managing director on March 24. Outgoing Group CEO Michael Daly will step down as director of KMD Brands on March 25 and complete a transition period with Scrimshaw until April 4.

Ross Stores Reports Q4 Sales and Earnings at Top End of Forecast
Ross sales trends began softening later in January and into February. The company believes a combination of unseasonable weather and heightened volatility in the macroeconomic and geopolitical environments has negatively impacted customer traffic.