VF's sportswear Kipling brand sales up 22% in North America
22 Jul '05
7 min read
Outdoor
Their Outdoor businesses had another excellent quarter. Sales doubled in the quarter to $297 million from $146 million, with the acquisitions of the Vans, Kipling, Reef and Napapijri brands contributing $138 million of the increase. Their Vans and Kipling brands had exceptionally strong results and continue to outpace company expectations.
The Reef brand acquisition, which was completed in April 2005, contributed $25 million to sales in the quarter. Organic sales growth in the quarter was 9 percent, driven by strong growth in The North Face and JanSport brands. Operating income rose 97 percent, with a slight decline in margins reflecting the impact of recent acquisitions.
Intimate Apparel
Sales in their Intimate Apparel business, which includes companies Vanity Fair, Vassarette, Lily of France, Bestform and Curvation brands, declined 5 percent in the quarter, to $223 million from $235 million.
They noted previously that 2004 results benefited from a large new product launch with a specialty store customer, which will result in difficult sales and profit comparisons throughout 2005. The 61 percent decline in operating income and lower margins primarily result from the lower sales and aggressive actions taken to align capacity and reduce costs. They expect comparisons in the second half of the year to improve versus the first half.
Imagewear
Their Imagewear coalition reported a 4 percent sales increase in the quarter, to $181 million from $173 million. The increase in sales was a result of the January 2005 acquisition of the assets of a licensee of the Harley-Davidson Motor Company, Inc, which drove a double-digit sales gain in their licensed sports apparel business. Occupational apparel sales were about flat in the quarter. Operating income rose 16 percent as they continue to lower product costs and leverage a very solid business platform.
marketing@alchempro.com
