2010 February « RetailSails

Archive for February, 2010

Gap Beats the Street, but Don’t Call it a Comeback

Published February 25, 2010 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: e-commerce, gap (gps), retail sales, same-store sales

Gap Inc. managed to beat consensus analyst earnings estimates by a penny for the fourth quarter of 2009, as improving sales and substantially higher margins helped drive strong bottom-line growth from the year-ago period.

For the quarter, net income jumped 45% to $352 million and diluted eps increased 50% to $0.51/share from last year. Total sales rose 3.8% to $4.2 billion and same-store sales increased 2%. Strong comp growth of 7% at Old Navy and 3% growth in e-commerce sales helped offset continued weakness at Gap, Banana Republic, and International chains. This was the first quarterly same-store sales gain for the company overall since the first quarter of 2004.

Continue reading ‘Gap Beats the Street, but Don’t Call it a Comeback’

Weekly Retail Sales: Resilient in the Face of Stormy Weather

Published February 23, 2010 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: icsc, johnson redbook, retail sales, same-store sales

Even as another batch of winter storms early in the week dampened prospects for President’s Day sales, pent-up demand drove shoppers back to the stores this past week. Sales trends continue to improve, aided by easy comparisons from a year ago and a consumer who is being somewhat less cautious with their spending.

The International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) reported that chain store sales rebounded 2.3% from the prior week and rose 0.9% from the year-ago period, following a 0.7% YoY decline last week leading up to Valentine’s and President’s Day,

“Sales posted a solid post-storm catch-up after last weeks severe blizzard in the East and a snowstorm in the South,” said Michael Niemira, ICSC director of research and chief economist. “Sales volatility has been amplified by the impact of snowfall on sales these past two weeks,” Niemira added. ICSC Research expects comparable store sales to increase about 2% in February after a 3% gain in January. Continue reading ‘Weekly Retail Sales: Resilient in the Face of Stormy Weather’

Can Abercrombie & Fitch Find its Mojo Again?

Published February 19, 2010 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: abercrombie & fitch (anf), aeropostale (aro), american eagle outfitters (aeo), retail sales, same-store sales, teen retail

Once the darling of the teen retail scene, Abercrombie & Fitch has fallen on hard times since the start of the recession. Missteps including fashion flops and their refusal to markdown prices have driven U.S. consumers to lower-priced rivals American Eagle Outfitters and especially Aeropostale. The company has acknowledged its past mistakes and is working to address the problems, but A&F still has a long way to go before it regains the title as king of teen retail.

In the fourth quarter of 2009, Abercrombie said total sales decreased 4.6% to $936 million, while same-store sales dropped 13%. This was the 9th consecutive quarter of same-store sales declines, and came on top of last year’s Q4 which saw comparable sales plunge 25%. Net income declined 30% to $47.5 million ($0.53 diluted eps) from a year ago and was down 78% from the 4th quarter of 2007.

Continue reading ‘Can Abercrombie & Fitch Find its Mojo Again?’

Retail Quick View: Sears Goes Exclusive with Bongo

Published February 18, 2010 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: jc penney (jcp), kohl's (kss), private label, retail, sears

RetailSails has learned that Iconix Brands has signed an exclusive licensing deal with Sears Holdings for its Bongo Brand. Ever since the merger of Kmart and Sears in 2005, the combined Sears Holdings has been way behind the apparel curve and failed to create any national brands, while competitors Kohl’s, J.C. Penney, Walmart and Target have significantly increased their exclusive and private label presence.

Bongo is one of 21 brands owned by Iconix, and is currently sold in mid-tier department stores. We estimate the main jeans brand in both junior and girls has been in the range of at most $30 million in volume, while shoes, accessories, etc. does a lot less than that. Another brand of Iconix – Mudd – went exclusive with Kohl’s in late 2008, and we estimate volume in that brand went from about $100 million to $500 million since the deal was signed. Based on that experience, we estimate Kmart/Sears can easily do well over $200 million on Bongo in the first year alone.

Since the merger, most people have questioned whether Sears is a retailer or a hedge fund, and they have woefully under-invested in stores. Most of upper management was made up of hedge-fund wizard Eddie Lampert’s former friends and colleagues from the financial world, rather than executives with retail experience. However, we believe two recent hires could represent a turning point in the company’s fortunes. Continue reading ‘Retail Quick View: Sears Goes Exclusive with Bongo’

Weekly Retail Sales: Not Much Love for Valentine’s Day

Published February 17, 2010 Uncategorized Leave a Comment
Tags: consumer spending, icsc, johnson redbook, retail sales, same-store sales, valentine's day

Mother nature was not kind to retailers last week, as severe winter weather kept shoppers out of the stores and lean inventories held back sales of winter gear early in the week. While demand picked up over the weekend heading into Valentine’s and President’s Day, bargain-hunting shoppers continue to reign and retailers are struggling to wean them off the deep discounts they have become accustomed to.

The International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) reported that chain store sales declined 0.7% from a year ago for the week ending Feb 13th, while sales dropped 1.6% on a week-over-week basis. This was the first YoY decline since early September. Shoppers were held back by cold temperatures and severe snowstorms across the country, as 49 of the 50 states had snow on the ground last week.

“A severe blizzard dumped another heavy accumulation of snow in the East at midweek followed by a record-breaking snowstorm in the South from Dallas to Atlanta which hindered consumers’ ability to shop,” said Mike Niemira, ICSC’s chief economist. “However, storm-induced pent-up demand is likely to be unleashed during the upcoming current week.” ICSC Research expects comparable store sales to increase about 2% in February after a 3% gain in January. Continue reading ‘Weekly Retail Sales: Not Much Love for Valentine’s Day’

RetailSails

Archive for February, 2010

Gap Beats the Street, but Don’t Call it a Comeback

Weekly Retail Sales: Resilient in the Face of Stormy Weather

Can Abercrombie & Fitch Find its Mojo Again?

Retail Quick View: Sears Goes Exclusive with Bongo

Weekly Retail Sales: Not Much Love for Valentine’s Day

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