The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
L Brands Inc. offered an update on its holiday sales performance, reporting strength at its Bath & Body Works chain while Victoria’s Secret continues to struggle.
Bath & Body Works, which sells soaps, lotions and hand sanitiser, saw comparable sales rise 17 percent in the nine-week period ended Jan. 2. Sales on that basis, a key metric in retail, slumped 9 percent at Victoria’s Secret, which L Brands is preparing to separate from Bath & Body Works this year.
The crucial holiday season was seen as doubly important this year as retailers worked to make up for sales lost during Covid-19 shutdowns in the spring. This year saw a boom in e-commerce, helping offset a dramatic drop in shopper foot traffic.
That divergence was observed at Victoria’s Secret, where comparable sales dropped 23 percent in stores but jumped 24 percent online.
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Shares of L Brands rose as much as 3.5 percent to $45.09 in New York trading. The company was one of last year’s top performers in the S&P 500 Index.
Overall, comparable sales increased 5 percent in the period, according to a statement Thursday. L Brands, based in Columbus, Ohio, said it expects earnings per share, excluding some items, of $2.70 to $2.80 in the fiscal fourth quarter. That’s well above the average of estimates from analysts.
Earlier this week Tiffany & Co. said preliminary comparable sales worldwide were up 4% in the final two months of the year, even as U.S. sales dropped 4 percent.
By Jordyn Holman
The British musician will collaborate with the Swiss brand on a collection of training apparel, and will serve as the face of their first collection to be released in August.
Designer brands including Gucci and Anya Hindmarch have been left millions of pounds out of pocket and some customers will not get refunds after the online fashion site collapsed owing more than £210m last month.
Antitrust enforcers said Tapestry’s acquisition of Capri would raise prices on handbags and accessories in the affordable luxury sector, harming consumers.
As a push to maximise sales of its popular Samba model starts to weigh on its desirability, the German sportswear giant is betting on other retro sneaker styles to tap surging demand for the 1980s ‘Terrace’ look. But fashion cycles come and go, cautions Andrea Felsted.