Abercrombie & Fitch Co has posted a surge in sales in its fourth quarter and the full financial year, with sales up in all regions and across all brands.
The US fashion and lifestyle retailer reported a 21% increase in net sales to $1.5bn (£1.18bn) for the fourth quarter to February 3, 2024. Sales for the Abercrombie & Fitch and Hollister brands were up 35% and 9%, respectively.
Operating income during the quarter reached $223m (£174.8m), up from $87m (68.2m) on a reported basis in the previous year.
Sales in Europe, the Middle East and Africa were up 13% year on year for the quarter, while sales soared 23% and 21% in the Americas and the Asia-Pacific region, respectively.
With an eye to the retailer’s full-year performance to February 3, 2024, net sales jumped 16% year on year to reach a total of $4.3bn (£3.37bn) while operating income came in at $485m (£380m).
By segment, European sales were up 4% for the full year and 18% in Asia-Pacific and the Americas.
Abercrombie & Fitch brand sales jumped the most over the year, with a 27% increase, while Hollister sales increased by 6%.
Looking forward, Abercrombie said it expects growth of 4% to 6% from $4.3bn (£3.37bn) in 2023 and that the Abercrombie brand will continue to outperform Hollister.
The fashion retailer also said that the Americas will “continue to lead the regional performance”.
2023: A defining year
Abercrombie chief executive Fran Horowitz said: “I am incredibly proud of how we performed throughout fiscal 2023, finishing with fourth quarter year-over-year net sales growth of 21%, which exceeded our January business update expectations. Our strong fourth quarter was fueled by sales growth across regions and brands.
“Following several years of transformation across our brands, people and operating model, fiscal 2023 was a defining year for our company. In the first full year of our Always Forward plan, we executed our playbook, delivering the right product, voice and experience across regions and brands to our global customers.
“We entered fiscal 2024 in a position of strength with momentum across our brand portfolio. The success of our playbook gives us confidence that we can now shift more of our focus to expanding our global customer base.
“This year, our goal is to deliver sustainable, profitable growth, while making the necessary investments to build and support our longer-term ambition of $5 billion in global sales.”
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